


Fish Boy

by Belle_Lestrange101



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Complete, Desire, Discovery, Friendship, Hand Jobs, Interspecies Relationship(s), Interspecies Romance, Love, M/M, Matsuoka Rin/Nanase Haruka Fluff, Merman Nanase Haruka, Minor Tachibana Makoto/Yamazaki Sousuke, Moral Dilemmas, Ocean, Romance, creature - Freeform, dark au, merman, supressed feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-22
Updated: 2016-08-23
Packaged: 2018-04-22 22:59:43
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 60,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4853843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Belle_Lestrange101/pseuds/Belle_Lestrange101
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merman AU. </p><p>Rin is out jogging one morning on the beach near his hometown once his mother and sister have gone off on a gap-year holiday before his sister returns to her studies. Once at the beach, he strolls along the pier and relaxes, enjoying the rare moment to simply be himself and take it all in. He is about to leave when he hears something. Something that doesn't belong to the sea gulls hovering nearby. He goes over to a pair of moored boats to investigate, but doesn't expect to find the anomaly that he does. </p><p>As soon as he pulls back the netting from the poor creature stranded in the rock pool, he promptly turns away and heaves. What is this creature? How did it get here? What was he going to do when he can't get it out of his mind by the time he returns home?</p><p>The answer is quite simple really; he has to go back.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

** I **

The ocean scented air filled Rin's lungs as he bent over his knees and took long, heavy gulps. His heart was hammering in his ears and his skin was slick with a fine film of sweat.

Straightening up, he flexed his arms over his head to try and ease the burn in his muscles before unclipping his water bottle from his belt and unscrewing the cap. The water was tepid as it rushed down his sore throat. He felt as though his insides were on fire. His leg muscles quaked a little beneath him, now that the adrenaline from his early morning jog was wearing off.

Stretching his hamstrings out one final time, he cast a weary glance at shimmering waves as the tide went out ever so slowly. Exhaling through his nose, he fastened his almost empty bottle back to his belt before dragging his heavy feet to the concrete steps that led down to the sand and pebble beach. The dunes of sea-smooth pebbles crunched and clicked under his feet as he waded his way towards the wooden pier that stretched out over twenty meters into the frothing cyan water.

The light wind rippled the vest that hung over his muscles and he shuddered as it rapidly cooled his steaming skin. The water looked so cool and refreshing that he was practically itching to take his clothes off and dive into the lapping waves, and douse his body with the cool saltiness. He wanted to propel himself off the weathered planks and into the dark blue abyss beneath the glittering waves and simply lose himself. He wanted to get away from everything, not that his life was especially stressful, he just felt like being suspended in the water made him invincible as well as alienate him from the hurried blur of day-to-day life.

Stuffing his hands in the pockets of his jogging bottoms, he took his time strolling down toward the end of the pier. It may as well have been a walk to the end of the earth, as far as he was concerned, for swimming to him was simply heaven.

The planks creaked under his weight as he moved along the narrow boards and made his way to the far end. The water gushed and frothed underneath his feet, beckoning him to delve deep.

A ripple of pleasure went through him as he toed his shoes off and then clawed his sweaty socks from his feet. He stuffed them into his trainers and set them to one side before dropping to his knees and swinging his legs over the edge. The breeze cooled his feet down so much he curled his toes tightly before dipping his legs under the water.

Hunching over with his elbows on his knees, he sighed and bowed his head, the light breeze ruffling his dark red hair.

He didn't have the energy just yet to go back home. The house would be empty anyway, since his mother and sister had gone over to Hong Kong to see his grandparents. He was going to be alone for the next couple of months. His sister, Gou, was taking a year away from education and after she went to stay with their grandparents, they were going to head over to Cyprus and explore other cities a little. Rin wouldn't have minded going, himself, but he had swimming practice and try-outs for the Olympic scouts in the summer. He needed to train as much as possible.

He wiggled his toes in the gently lapping water before leaning back on his arms and tipping his head back. The sunlight instantly warmed his cooling skin.

Dotted along the small harbour Rin would see the bleached white underside of moored boats, the metal rungs clanking softly in the air. It was a calming scene that he was suspended in. He wished he didn't have to break the spell, but his wristwatch bleeped, alerting him that it was now 9AM. He needed to get back home and ready himself for the rest of the day.

Dragging his aching legs back up to his chin, he patted his shins dry before pulling on his limp socks and trainers.

Standing up on tiptoes, the plank creaking under his mass, he stretched all his stiff muscles before raking his fingers through his stringy hair. A shower was in order as soon as he got in.

Taking his hoodie off the splintering planks, he tied the sleeves around his waist and turned his back on the soft call of the ocean as it glittered in the sunlight.

The pebbles clicked and clacked underfoot as he waded his way off the pier and started mounting the dunes on the way to the main road. His mind was trailing along to what he'd be able to get up to in the next month or so with a free house and no one to bother him. Perhaps he could have a little pool party. He hadn't had one of those for ages and considering how unseasonably warm it was for April, what better excuse for his training sessions? He could even invite Makoto and Sousuke over. Rei and Nagisa still had some exams to get through before they could concentrate completely on training.

Just as he was about to mount the concrete steps up to the main road a strange sound caught his ear.

Swivelling on his heel, he narrowed his eyes and strained his ears, searching desperately for anything out of the ordinary that could've made such a high-pitched screeching sound.

Other than a few moored boats in the sandy pits near the water, he couldn't see anything. A lone gull circled over by a small cluster of boats. Another soon, joined and then another, cawing loudly. Had that been the sound he was hearing? Frowning he was about to continue on his way when he heard it again.

It was definitely _not_ a sea gull.

For some reason his curiosity got the better of his as he let his heavy feet guide him back down the few concrete steps he'd mounted, pebbles crunching underfoot as he made his way over to the moored boats. They seemed to grow in size as he neared them, looming over him. He shivered as the shadow engulfed him, blocking him from the gentle heat of the sun. The shade was ever-so-similar to water.

It sent ripples running through him.

The gulls screeched and cawed overhead, gliding in the still air. He frowned up at them; they normally only ever circled like that when there were some form of carcass they could pick apart. Perhaps a small net of fish had washed up on the shore? Or maybe someone had drowned? Dread flooded his stomach like icy water as he stopped at the bough of one of the boats. What if it _was_ someone who had drowned? He hadn't brought his mobile with him; how would he be expected to call the police?

A tremor ran down his spine as he brushed his hair out of his eyes and peered around the end of the boat.

Within the sandy pit sat a small rock-pool where some crabs would normally skitter back and forth. Today there weren't any. Among the scattered brush of silky smooth pebbles and crunchy seaweed, was a strange tangled mass that glimmered in the sunlight. Spray of blood dotted the damp sand. A gull swooped in low over his head and cried out. He swung his arm out to stop it from colliding with his head, before taking a few tentative steps closer to the shimmering mass.

Had some large fish caught in the next when the tide was in? There was no movement from underneath the thick black netting, but there was only one way to be sure. He didn't want to interfere; least of all he didn't want to openly serve the gulls a catch as huge as this. Walking down the length of the creature, he estimated that it was at least six feet in length, if not, more.

"... The fuck," he cursed softly as he crouched down at one end of the covered creature. He could see, through a tight cloak of net and seaweed, that there were dark green and blue scales flashing through in the sun. However, instead of being fairly wet and glossy, they were dull and lacking the all-natural colour -whatever that had been -they were also fairly cracked and drying out along the blunt edges. He was just frowning and about to shift the heavy fishing net a little to get a better look, when -what he assumed was -the tail twitched a little, shifting the entire bulk of the creature.

Rin lurched back, landed on his arse in the damp sand and nearly knocking his head against the weathered underside the boat.

His heart hammered in his chest as another shrill cry erupted from the mass. That's when he saw them. Long, bone-white fingers reaching out through the black webbing, making it tent upwards. He felt sick to his stomach but he couldn't look away. How could he? The gulls cawed over his head, one of them attempting to take another dive at the immobile creature.

It pecked and prodded at the creature, fluttering its wings and letting out a shrill cry.

"Piss off!" Rin sneered as he through a large stone in the direction of the gulls. He didn't hit any, and for a brief moment he was relieved, until they took another swoop at the creature now thrashing in the tangled netting. He aimed another couple of smaller stones, making sure to draw closer to the creature. He couldn't deny his curiosity. His heart hammed in his chest as he turned his attention back to it.

He could feel the sweat on the back of his neck starting to bubble up against as the sun climbed higher in the sky.

Cuffing his forehead he crouched down, his aching muscles screaming for him to turn around and ignore this anomaly. He knew he couldn't, though. A rather ordinary day had suddenly gotten extremely interesting. Not to mention he was frozen to the spot as he tried to peer through the tangled mass of knots and seaweed to see what he was actually 'looking' at.

He could see something pale in there, but he didn't know if that was just the bottom of the rock pool.

The rocks were incredibly uneven as he adjusted his weight on his knees.

' _What is that?_ ' he thought was he grabbed a handful of the netting and tried to claw it away enough to peer through the small gaps. Deciding that he was getting nowhere, he stood up and gave a few swift tugs, lurching the creature and causing the low water in the pool to slosh around. He backed away several meters to pull off as much of the fishing net as possible, before tossing it down onto the sand, exhausted. The net was a lot heavier than it looked.

"Fuck!" he cursed as he moved back over to clamber up over the jagged black rocks around the rock-pool. He was aching all over. The run plus all this to-ing and fro-ing was aggravating his muscles to no end. Standing to his full height on the rough rocks he looked down and felt the air hit his lungs hard. It was like he was suffocating at an oxygen bar.

He couldn't believe his eyes. Literally. There was no way on God's good earth that his eyes weren't deceiving him.

Laying at an awkward angle in the barely filled rock-pool was the stark-white fleshy body of what looked like a young man, probably around Rin's own age, or a little younger. Although it could've been a girl if it hadn't been for the thin weight of muscle on the chest. The person looked so androgynous. However, that wasn't the reason as to why Rin was having trouble breathing; the real reason was of the fact that, as he raked his eyes down over the lithe dried-out white body, where he should've blushed and looked away at seeing genitals, there was -well -nothing. Nothing, that is, except for the pebbling of dried green and blue scales cutting through the milky white flesh. Layer upon layer of crisp scales trailed down the length of what should've been a pair of ghostly legs.

His breathing was getting harder and harder to control as, through the black mesh of the fishing net, he could clearly see that there were no white feet to greet his gaze. There was only a moulted excuse of oily green fins that could belong to the creature or to an assortment of dead fish that had also gotten tangled in the net.

A part of him wanted to touch it, to see if it was real, but another part of him was too transfixed to move. At first glance the skin had been flawless, like sea-glass, however on closer inspection he could see that there was no belly button, no nipples, just a shiny white film of flesh that looked as though they had the imprint of scales without actually chiselling out of the skin. He swallowed hard as he saw that instead of ears there were two small hole-like incisions on either side of the head, with a ghost-like filmy fin following the curve of the jaw.

A shiver ran through him.

The sun had ducked behind a couple of fluffy clouds, yet the temperature had dropped so dramatically. Could there really be some rain on the way? He felt a little winded as he ducked his gaze and grimaced at the blood that gleamed over the white hands of the creature as they floated limply on the water. Thin lacerations created a fine red web over its body. Had it clawed itself or were the rough rocks to blame?

Why did he _care_?

Shaking his head, he cast a glance over at the few gulls that hovered by on the nearby rocks and the wet sand. They were eyeing the rock-pool with their beady little eyes. He was sure if sea gulls licked their lips, they'd be doing so right now. As far as they were concerned this creature was theirs for the taking, to fill their bellies out and later to shit on young, unsuspecting children on the pier.

Staggering back onto more level ground, he braced himself against the boat and dry-heaved over the sand. It was all too much. The blood, the smell of the sea and old fish, the scale rot and sea-gull shit ... not to mention the creature ... it was just too over-whelming. His shoulders shook against before his stomach flipped and he released what little breakfast he'd had earlier onto the sand between his feet.

He grimaced as the taste and smell of his vomit assaulted his senses.

He shuddered violently and unwound his hoodie from his waist. He quickly shrugged it on to bar himself from the cold before leaning his forehead on the rough, weathered wood. Drawing in long deep breaths, he forced himself not to look back over at the creature. A lone caw from the remaining gull made him feel guilty. Then again it wasn't his responsibility. With shaking hands, he hunched over and marched away from the scene, determined to put it from his mind as he mounted the concrete steps.

He took them two at a time until he'd reached the top.

As soon as he reached the top, a swift cold breeze rushed over him. He hunched over, curling his arms around his torso and forced himself to start walking. He didn't even know if it was the right direction to home, he just knew that he needed to get away. That tarmac hurt his sore feet as he trudged his way along the road-side.

All too soon he was staring up at his house, his brain a screaming mess of white noise. The world hadn't changed and yet everything looked funny, like the world was visibly tilting on its axis and warping his vision. Taking his house-key out of his pocket, he opened the front door and locked it behind him. He felt numb all over as his heart finally slowed to a normal rate. The appearance of the creature had knocked the air from his lungs. He felt as though he was in a corner of the universe that was unaffected by Time and Science.

The laws of physics seemed to surpass him entirely.

Running a hand down his face, he let out a soft groan and slid down the length of his door until he was settled on the laminate flooring of the hall.

He didn’t know how long he stayed there. Long enough for his buttocks to go numb, he knew that, but he had no real way of knowing. He'd bowed his head to his knees and stayed there, crouched awkwardly against the front door for who knew how long. When he finally leaned up he saw that the sky had darkened, or at the very least the sun was behind some clouds once again. Either way his legs were numb and his appetite had finally crawled back up through the surface of the shock.

Feeling lethargic he dragged himself to his feet and shuffled into the kitchen. He opened the fridge and winced at the bright light and he tried to figure out what he could be bothered to eat, without wasting what was left of his energy on cooking. He felt strange, like he was drifting through a dream. He could wake up at any moment to see that he'd simply eaten too much before going to bed, or something equally as plausible.

He finally found a box of cereal and started to eat it dry as he slumped over onto the sofa and stared mindlessly as he flicked through TV channels. He finally found a channel that wasn't too tedious and got comfortable for the duration of the evening.

He ate mechanically, trying to focus his mind on the TV instead of what lie out there, screeching on the beach for the gulls to go away. He couldn't think about it. He wouldn't. There was no good that would come from thinking about it -whatever it was.

His throat was tight and stiff as he tried to force it all down.

He needed to eat, despite the vile taste of old vomit still lingering at the back of his throat.

Another shiver ran through him. He drew a throw blanket over himself and nestled down, hoping that the exhaustion and the low temperature would help him to sleep. He hoped that this was all just a horrible dream. He'd wake up and everything would be better ... or at least normal ... right?

When he woke up the world would be normal and he would return his full attention to training and the Olympics.

No more late nights in front of the TV ... After this one, anyway.


	2. II

**II**

His mouth tasted vile.

That was the first coherent thought that Rin had when he sluggishly came back to the world of the conscious a number of long hours afterwards. He grimaced as he slumped against the backrest of the sofa and dragged his hands down his face and yawning heavily. He hadn't believed he was that tired, but apparently a nice long sleep was all he'd needed.

Shifting, he leaned over the edge of the sofa and reached for the television remote. He'd accidentally left the damned thing on the entire time he'd been asleep. His mother was not going to be happy when she got the electricity bill. Raking his fingers through his hair he was about to turn it off when the re-runs of the news came on. Frowning up at the bright screen he leaned back a little, tilting his head as the newsreader came on. There was nothing of importance until the weather came on.

" _We're expecting to see some terrible storms coming from the Eastern border, with strong winds ..._ "

A shiver ran through him. His stomach ran cold and knotted tightly within him. The cereal he'd eaten before sleeping was threatening to swarm up his throat like locusts desperate for freedom. He hurried over to the kitchen, poured himself some water and drank the entire glass down in three swift gulps. He felt it splash down in his empty stomach, like waves against the rocks down at the beach.

The beach...

Frowning heavily he couldn't place his finger on why the beach was so important. Of course if it rained rather heavily, then it meant it wouldn't be wise for him to go onto the pier. It also meant that fishing was out of the question for the locals until the sea settled down a little more. Fishing ... Boats ... His eyes went wide as he realised what his mind had been trying to block out.

_The creature._

Would it even be there? What would he do it had already managed to get itself back into the water? What if the gulls had pecked it to death? Then it would be a completely wasted journey. He furrowed his brow as he glanced at the kitchen clock. He groaned; that didn't help at all. It had two hands, it wasn't a digital one. Trying back to the dark living room he searched in vain for his phone. He finally found it, just poking out from underneath the sofa. He clicked the screen and saw that it was 5AM. How on earth had he slept for almost an entire day? No wonder he felt so heavy headed.

Trudging over to the bathroom, not bothering in turning on any lights, he made his way over to the sink and opened the medicine cupboard. He quickly brushed his teeth as hard as he could and then rinsed his mouth out with the strongest mouthwash he owned, before spitting the flavour into the sink and letting another shiver run through him. Did he dare take the risk? Was it even worth driving in such a horrible state of sleeplessness? What was the point in going to see if the creature was still there?

' _Because if it was a stranded dog or a lost kitten, you wouldn't have run away in the first place!_ ' sneered the voice at the back of his head. He couldn't deny the truth of the statement. Even if it was only in his head. If it had been a lost child or a dog or anything else he wouldn't have run away. He'd have taken them with him to his house and then called the police and filed a proper report. But what was the protocol for this sort of ... creature? He didn't even know what it was. A part of him didn't want to know at all.

And yet he felt some sort of emotion gnawing away at him. Was it guilt? No it couldn't be. He had no reason to feel guilty. Was it because the creature had been alive, clearly stranded in a rock-pool, injured and alone? If it had been taken somewhere safer then perhaps Rin wouldn't be chastising himself and hunting for his wellington boots in order to trek the sodden beach. Huffing the entire time, he pulled his mac on over his head, tucked his hair under a baseball cap and tugged the hood over everything.

Swiping his car keys off the counter, he left the dry warmth of his house.

Despite being early in the morning, the world looked as though it was still asleep, the heavy clouds already covering the majority of the sky, a swift wind easing them across the sky at a brisk pace, unlike the lazy way they normally moved. Hurrying away to the garage, he tugged the door up and stepped into the sheltered area, opened the car door and slotted his key into the ignition.

Within moments the engine roared to life and he was backing out onto the main road, seemingly the only thing moving on the roads at such an early hour. He turned the heaters on as he moved the pick-up truck along the wide, bending road, the sea hugging close to the shore already.

He shivered as the choppy grey waves crashed and frothed against the pier as he awkwardly climbed over slippery black rocks near where the boats had been moored. They were now bobbing on the water; that could only mean that his luck of finding the creature was next to none. He didn't know how he felt about that. On the one hand it meant that the creature was out of his mind and his life completely, but on the other hand if the gulls had gotten to it...

A few gulls braving the gushing winds cawed and swooped low over his head, but he decided to ignore them as he bowed his head, stuffed his hands in his pockets and made his way over even higher, wetter rocks, his boots slipping and skidding on loose pebbles. He let out a loud string of curses as the wind chapped his cheeks and lips. His muscles were quivering with the cold as he came into view of the large, sloping cliffs that sank down into the ocean.

Squinting up over the rocks he stepped down into a sandy pit that came up at the mouth of a small cave etched into the side of the cliff. He stopped short, staring down at the sand and frowning heavily. He couldn't be sure but there were a few streaks of what could possibly be blood. Swallowing thickly, he scrutinized the surrounding areas, looking for something, anything that would indicate if it was the creature and where it was now hiding.

Following the trail of blood through the sand, he noticed the marks in the sand that looking as though something big had been dragged through. He felt his insides turn to ice as he came toward a tight alcove carved into the rock, just inside the mouth of the cave. The air was damp and cloying as he sucked it in. The stench of rotten fish and seaweed smacked his senses as he strained his eyes into the gloom to find anything to indicate the creature. A few crusted scales dotted the sand around his feet.

Now that he'd gotten there, he wasn't sure he wanted to proceed. What did he plan to do if the creature was huddled up in the alcove? Take it home? That was laughable in itself. What would he do with it if and when he did get it home?

He really hadn't thought this through.

Then he heard something; something that sounded like a distressed animal clawing at the rocks. Edging deeper into the cave, he stumbled over something thick and fleshy. Sweat broke out down the back of his neck. It was here. Looking down, he could make out the outline of something thick and shimmering a dull blue-green colour. He tentatively nudged it again with his boot and yelped when the thing -was it a tail? -thrashed out against his shin. The muscle in that thing was swift and powerful. He could already feel his shin beginning to bruise.

Following the line of the dull scales, he saw that the creature had clawed its way into a deep set alcove. It was far too narrow for Rin to fit in himself, but he doubted the creature had fit without a struggle.

Drawing in deep breaths, he crouched down and, with shaking hands, got a hold of the narrowest part of the trail, the heavy fins limply twitching before he gave a swift tug. The tail thrashed and jerked in his grip but he held tight and tugged again. After a lot of pulling and maintaining a grip on the distressed creature, he finally saw the stark white skin as he finished freeing the creature from the tight, sharp alcove it'd squeezed into. Instead of calming down, the creature arched in the gritty sand and let out a bone-chilling cry. Its voice sounded like it was about to break from the shrillness of it, and its gills flared along its jaw.

"Calm down!" he tried to shout over the continuous cries. He tried to dodge, unsuccessfully from the sharp claws that lashed out at the empty air between them. "I'm not going to hurt you!" He didn't know why he was trying to reason with an over-sized fish but he hadn't come back all this way just to get his eyes clawed out.

Dipping his hand into his pocket, he took out the thick rubber bands he'd taken from under his bed. Originally they'd been used for him to stretch his arm and shoulder muscles better. They were incredibly durable so hopefully they'd be of some use to him now. He stood back and waited until the creature managed to get back onto its front again. Just as it was trying to slide its way back into the alcove he sprung upon it, digging a knee down into its back and pinning it into the gritty sand.

The creature screeched and thrashed but was unable to scrape its way back across the grit. Rin managed to get one of the thick bands under its chest before forcing each arm down to its side and wrapped the rubbed securely around it. It still rocks and cried out beneath him but he did his best to block the sounds out as he bound the fins together and finally, wrapped the final hand around the 'thighs' and webbed hands. Kneeling back onto the sand, his breathing hard and heavy to his ears, he tried to catch his breath and calm his heart down.

The creature craned its neck to the side and caught his eye. Its filmy eyelids narrowed a little before its dark eyes fixated on him. A strangled hiss issued out from its mouth.

Rin merely glared right back and sneered, flashing his sharp teeth. Surprisingly enough, the creatures thin, white lips eased back over its teeth and it averted its gaze. Almost cowering within its rubber binds. Was it afraid of him now? Or perhaps it was simply giving up for the time being.

Stretching his muscles quickly, he grabbed the creature by the chest, dipped and shifted the thing over his shoulders. The cold wind skirted around his ankles as he straightened his back up, then rose to his full height. He staggered a little with the additional weight. It was a trial getting up to the main road, even though the concrete steps were worn smooth.

His breathing was getting heavier and heavier as he finally made it onto the flat embankment beside the road. His pick-up truck was parked on the shoulder a little way away. He staggered a little as he finally made his way around the back of the truck. He managed to throw the oilskin cover aside and finally dumped the creature into the back. He hadn't been able to do it gently. There was simply no way for it to be done.

Tugging the oilskin back over the creature to shield it from view, he pinned it down before turning to climb back into the driver's seat. As soon as the engine was on, he turned the heater up before pulling a U-turn and driving in the direction of his home. By this point there were a few early morning commuters straggling about, but none bothered to look twice at his truck. Thankfully, the creature wasn't making any fuss in the back of the car. On the one hand, he was grateful; on the other hand he still needed to think of what to do when he actually got home. A small part of him knew that he needed to call someone, anyone, to help him with the animal. However ... there was a part of him that liked knowing something no one else did.

Rubbing his temples, he relaxed in the driver's seat as he cruised along the almost empty roads.

He knew that if he were to call Sousuke, the taller man would simply over-react and panic. He knew he was going to get nothing but anger and irrationality from him, if he even dared to let his friend know what was going on.

On the other hand he could always call Makoto. He was the most rational of all his friends and was normally always level-headed when it came to crises.

Rei and Nagisa were both out; Rei was too scientific it was a wonder he didn't analyse his own breathing patterns, and Nagisa was like a gerbil on sugar. They were truly a force to be reckoned with when they got together.

Letting out a heavy sigh, he massaged his temples yet again, his sore eyelids almost closing a couple of times as he made his way safely back into his garage. To make sure no one saw what he was up to, he closed the door and turned the bare bulb on. It swung weakly in the faint draft that came in through the small crack in one of the walls. Wiping the sweat from the back of his neck and forehead, he unhooked the oilskin from the back of the truck and hauled it to one side.

The creature looked even worse than it had in the gloom of the cave. However, he wouldn't know what he was officially dealing with until he was able to investigate underneath better lighting. The creature appeared to be asleep as he easily managed to lift it out of the truck and carefully made his way up the couple of steps leading into the house. The wrinkled his nose as he kicked the door shut, the smell of scale rot clogging his senses once again. He really needed to do something about that. He didn't know what exactly, but he had a funny feeling he'd be on Google for the majority of the evening.

Slipping a little on the laminate flooring, he managed to make his way over the island counter in the kitchen. With one final lurch he managed to get the creature onto the counter with a heavy thud. The tail slapped down against the side, making Rin jump at the sudden sound. The creature didn't wake up though. Either that or Rin had accidentally knocked unconscious in the back of the truck.

He reached out with shaking fingers and pressed them to the creatures' slippery neck. Something fluttered against his fingertips. A pulse! He didn't understand why he felt relieved that the creature was, in fact, still alive, but it left him feeling a little better.

Rin ran his eyes up and down the length of the creature and grimaced a little. The lacerations and scratches decorating the creatures' slimy, pale skin were clearly aggravated from having rolled in the dirt. The sea-water probably hadn't helped. It most likely felt like having rolled around in a patch of nettles. He cringed as he gently prodded around the tender skin around the scrapes.

A few muscles twitched but the creature still didn't wake up.

Breathing heavily, he flicked the kitchen lights on and clenched his jaw. He needed to use some ointment to get any infections out. He didn't know what sort of reaction it would have but that's what his mother normally did when he skinned his legs whilst out running. He glanced down at the creature, fully focused on it again, and groaned, dropping his head into his hands. This wasn't going to work. There was no way he could just use ointment on this creature without knowing the repercussions. Not to mention, where was he going to put the damned thing.

He really  _really_  hadn't thought any of this through.

He dragged a stool out from the counter and climbed up onto it. He hunched over on the counter, his elbows pressing down into the marbled top. He dropped his head into his hands and let out a yell of frustration. Luckily, the yell was muffled by his hands. What had he done? What had he been thinking? Why hadn't he just gone to the airport with his mother and sister and seen them off? Why had he insisted that his training was so damned important that he couldn't delay or even miss one lousy morning jog?

Clawing his hands through his hair, he shuddered at the thought of being lumbered with a strange creature.

He didn't know what he was going to do. He hadn't felt this hopeless since he was a little boy and was constantly terrified of the monster under his bed. He remembered hurrying into his parent's room and crawling in beside his mother, snuggling up against her chest until he fell asleep. However, now there was nowhere for him to run and hardly anywhere for him to hide. There was no mother or Gou to hug him tight and tell him that everything was going to be okay in that sweet, endearing way they usually did, whether he wanted comforting or not.

Unfortunately for him, there would be no comfort today.

All around him the house was silent. The only sound came from the wind howling outside the windows.


	3. III

**III**

Rin furrowed his brow when he heard a strange sort of clicking.

At first he thought it was simply a sound from the fridge, or a clock in one of the other rooms of the house. Raking his hands through his greasy hair he sighed and looked up. He flinched when he noticed that the dark eyes of the creature were staring straight at him. He hadn't seen eyes that deep or dark before on another animal. Dark yes, but these eyes, these deep aqua-blue eyes were as bottomless as the ocean he sometimes swam in. It was like he could feel them pulling him closer towards the creature. The odious smell of scale-rot smacked him in the nose, making him lurch back. The stall tipped underneath him, he had to snatch at the counter to keep his balance.

He checked his phone and frowned when he saw that he'd gotten a text from Makoto simply reading, ' _Why weren't you at training last night? Call me when you can_.'

He thrust the phone away before slipping off the stool and flicking the lights on. Even in the brighter lights, Rin couldn't deny that the cuts and welts covering the creature's chest looked a little too deep to heal properly on their own. He cocked his head to the side and tried to do a mental list of any antihistamines he had in the medicine cabinet. Tearing his eyes away from the creature restrained on the counter, he turned and marched to the bathroom to see what he had.

Nothing –at least nothing that would be could for a sea-creature's skin.

"Fuck!" he cursed out, slamming his fist against the tiled wall. "What the fuck am I supposed to do now?"

Wiping his face down, Rin dragged himself from the bathroom and was hit with the weak stench of fish. He must have gotten used to it when he'd been in the kitchen. He clawed at his hair and tried to think about what he could do. The wounds were most likely infected already; he needed to do something quickly. He could do research tonight and go out shopping the following day to find the ointments or whatever he needed to help heal the wounds of an aquatic animal.

A light-bulb went off in his head.

He hurried through to his sister's bedroom and was immediately assaulted by all the adorable little plushies that crowded every spare inch of her room. The pink bedclothes made him cringe as he hurried over to the small dresser underneath the window. On the dresser was a small tank that held a couple of brightly coloured angel fish. Gou loved them for some reason. He didn't see the appeal himself, but where there were fish normally there were some fish-care books nearby. Crouching down, he rifled through the small bookshelf underneath the tank and finally found what he was looking for; a couple of fish-care books. Flicking through the pages, he saw that there was indeed a section about fin-rot, however the symptoms confused him. If he was to believe the book, then it would mean that living in the ocean was killing the fins of the creature.

Rin frowned as he leaned back against the small expanse of bare wall by the fish tank.

The only thing he could to calm his racing mind was to look through the glass of the tank and watch the fish lazily swimming to and fro. Something throbbed at the back of his mind. And then it clicked; the creature needed to be submerged! His heart skipped awkwardly in his chest as he made up his mind and got off his sisters bedroom floor. Detouring into the bathroom he grabbed the basic anti-bacterial wipes and hoped that the creature's top-half was similar to the human anatomy enough that the wipes wouldn't sting too much.

Returning to the kitchen he opened all the blinds to let some natural light in, despite the sky still being over-cast, before turning to the creature on the island counter. He neared the counter and set the wipes to one side. The creature struggled against the rubber bindings and Rin could see that the slimy web of loose skin over its chest and had dried out completely. It had even started to flake off a little.

"Alright I … I don't even know why I'm talking to you," Rin sighed as he raked his hair out of his face. He really needed to take the time and shower. He still hadn't washed the sweat off of him from his run the day before. "I need to know if you can understand me so … Blink your eyes twice if you can understand me." He spoke a little slower; to make sure that the creature could hear each syllable.

The creature stared at him for a moment before it slowly closed his once and then a second time.

Rin sighed with relief, "Okay that's good. Freaky but … Good. Okay," he cast a glance around the room, "The skin on your chest, it needs to come off. Will you let me take it off?" The creature merely stared at him, his eyes narrowing a fraction, "Blink twice for 'yes' and once for 'no'."

It blinked once waited a little while, and then finally blinked a second time.

"Alright, it might be a little uncomfortable okay, but I'm going to peal if off." Rin went over to the sink and filled a bowl with warm water. He added a small squirt of anti-bacterial soap and then brought the bowl over to the counter, "If you don't move around too much, I'll undo the ties, okay?"

The creature didn't blink; it merely made a guttural sound in its throat before looking away. Rin took it as a green-light and rinsed a soft, clean sponge into the water and rung it out.

A hiss issued out through the creature's clenched teeth, but he didn't shift away as Rin gently slued the warm water over the flaking skin and gently pealed large strips of webbed flesh. It was gross and felt slimy as he tossed it into a sodden pile at the end of the counter. The fresh skin underneath was flushed a pale pink and looked a little tender were pieces of skin were broken from their struggle in the cave. Rin did feel a little bad but there was nothing more he could do other than tried to heal the strange thing that had come into his life.

"Is the temperature okay?" Rin asked, turning his attention to the creature's head to see the response.

Two blinks.

"Good. Once I've got the skin off, I need to wipe the cuts. It might sting a little. So … Sorry for that."

The creature made a creaking sound in its throat but didn't object. Once the filmy flesh had been removed and thrown into the bin, Rin turned back to the creature, wipes in hand, and tugged one free. He hesitated a little as he tentatively stroked the wipe over one of the deeper grazes. The creature hissed and its tail thrashed involuntarily. "Sorry," Rin mumbled before he continued to wipe the cuts and scratches. He used up a good few wipes before he decided that he'd done the best that could be done without more information.

Once he'd cleaned everything up, he grabbed a pair of sharp scissors from one of the drawers. At the glimmer of the steal blades, the creature's eyes widened in fear, its long fingers clenched tightly and the tail thumped aggressively against the base of the counter. "Hey, hey! It's just to cut the bindings!"

The tail thumped again, even harder.

"What do you want me to do? Untie them myself? Why, so you can scratch my eyes out?" he growled, his teeth grinding together in an ugly grimace as he glared down at the creature. To his surprise the creature blinked once. "What then? So I can get my head broken with your tail?" Another single blink. Rin grit his teeth, "Fine." He tugged the drawer open and slammed the scissors inside and out of sight. "There? Happy?" he snapped before his shoulders slumped heavily.

Feeling incredibly defeated he reached out for the ties and pick at them. They were stretched far too tightly to unfasten properly, and soon after plucking at them for about ten minutes Rin grew frustrated again. "Look can I just cut them with the scissors?"

One blink.

"Stop being such a … whatever you are!" he snapped, "I can't untie them! I need the scissors!"

One blink.

"Stupid clam-brained git!" he spat out before he sank down into one of the stools underneath the counter. "This is ridiculous," he cast a look at the creature splayed before me. "I don't even know what you are." The creature gave him a deadpanned look. "Oh no, I know you're some weird, mythical completely ridiculous creature, but I don't know if you're a girl or a boy."

The creature rolled its eyes. Rin was momentarily surprised. He didn't know sarcasm and insolence was widespread across different species.

"Do _you_  know what you are?" he asked. The creature gave a low creaking reply. "Oh right," Rin felt his cheeks flush, "Are you a girl, yes or no?"

One blink.

"So –you're a boy?"

Two blinks.

"Alright then, do you have a name?"

Two blinks.

"Would I be able to pronounce it?"

There was a small pause before the creature blinked once.

For some reason, Rin actually huffed a small laugh at that, "Right, it probably sounds like something a dolphin would say." Licking his lips, he couldn't help but frown a little, "I just feel like I need to call you something. Would you care if I came up with a name for you?"

The pale shoulders shrugged awkwardly against the bindings.

"Alright, well I'll let you know when I think of something. You may approve it or reject whatever ones you hate. Trying to compromise here, so none of this tail banging nonsense, got it?" he held up a warning finger before going back over to the drawer. He grabbed the scissors and barely gave the creature enough time to register what was happening before he sliced through the taut rubber straps. The rubber pinged away, revealing darker pink stripes along the waist and upper torso where they'd clearly dug into the merman's skin.

The merman inhaled sharply, the wind whistling through its teeth. Rin noticed how a few of the lacerations had already started to scab over and dry out. He was a little relieved, but definitely needed to spend some time on the internet to know what exactly he was dealing with.

Casting a look at the clock he groaned a little before dropping his head, "Look I need to get you settled a little more. My bathtub will have to do for a little while. Try not to … er … move about too much. I don't think I'll be able to pick you up off the floor if you rolled off the counter."

He took a couple of steps away from the kitchen counter before setting the scissors on the coffee table in the adjoining living room, before turning his back on the place and heading into the downstairs bathroom, the one with the custom tub for when his grandparents came to visit. They needed a rather large tub so that they could each bathe one at a time and have enough room to work out their arthritic muscles.

He never thought he'd have another use for it until now.

Stuffing the plug into the hole, he secured it enough so that, hopefully the tail wouldn't tug on the chain and drain the bath when he was out training. He ran both the hot and cold taps to try and get a good temperature going. The bath was design to have the same heating appliance underneath it as the tiled floors did, so it would keep the moderate temperature steady for a lengthy period of time. As soon as the water started gushing down into the tub, he went out to the cupboard under the stairs to where the thermostat was, and gently increased the temperature for the under-floor heating.

He waited for a little while before he tugged his socks off and walked into the bathroom. The floor was slowly but surely heating up to a cosy temperature.

It took another forty-five minutes before the tub was half-way full. He let the water run for a little longer before he turned the taps off and made sure that he was able to touch the water without flinching. It was a mild temperature. He didn't know what the merman was used to, however he needed to get the creature submerged before more of the skin or, worse, the scales started to chip off all over the floor. His mother would not be happy if she came home to a carpet full of rotten scales.

Returning back down to the kitchen, he saw that the creature had somehow forced itself up onto its elbows, his breathing was laboured and his hair had dried into a dark blue mass of waves. Rin stopped for a moment, his eyes transfixed on the creature in front of him, before he shook some sense back into his head. "The bath is ready. Do you mind warm water?"

The merman tilted his head to the side, but gave Rin one blink for his efforts.

"Okay I'm going to need to carry you into the bathroom okay?" he stepped closer to the counter, adrenaline crashing through his veins at the sight of those long nails curled around the edge of the marble counter. It would only take one swipe to claw his eyes out. "Alright, you're going to need to hang onto my neck …" he trailed off as a frown marred the merman's alabaster features. "Alright I guess I'll … er … do it for you." With shaking fingers he took the merman's thin arms and wound them around his neck. The thin muscles were tough and stiff as he slid his hands underneath the scaly tail and hauled the creature off the counter top. He winced as he glanced over the white shoulder to see where the scales had left marks on the once smooth, clean surface. It would take him forever to scrub it clean.

"You're gonna have to pay for that!" he ground out as he shifted one foot in front of the other across the laminate floor. He paused, hearing his words for the first time. The creature stared at him. If Rin didn't know any better he'd say that the merman was as confused as he was. He rolled his eyes and gave a sardonic grin, "Yeah right, I don't think my mum would accept sea-shells as payment."

When he got the bathroom at the end of the long hallway, he kicked the door open with his bare foot. As he stepped onto the tiles, he suddenly realised how cold he was as the warmth rose up to through his body.

"I hope the water's okay," he stated softly as he shifted the weight of the merman in his arms. The creatures head bounced against his chest as he leaned over the bathtub. "You ready for this?" he asked, his arms already quaking with holding the merman at such an awkward angle.

Two blinks.

"Thank fuck!" his knees almost collapsed as he all but dropped the merman into the warm water.

He let out a heavy grunt as the water sloshed up and spattered his face. He blinked the water from his eyes and as it settled he watched as the merman sink down low enough for all but the upper half of his face to show. Rin panted as he straightened up and brushed his damp fringe out of his eyes. He waited for a couple of beats before rolling his eyes. "What, no thank you?" he griped sarcastically.

The creature rolled his dark eyes before blowing a couple of bubbles in the water. Rin couldn't help but chuckle a little at the action. It was so childish considering the seriousness of the entire situation.

Rin rolled his eyes in exasperation before standing up on the warm tiles and making his way out of the bathroom. The laminate flooring was cool underfoot as he hurried towards the kitchen. Instead of heading straight for the cleaning supplies, he simply stood in the middle of the room, surveying the few tell-tale signs that something strange had happened. On the floor he noticed a small dried-out scale gleaming dully on the floor. He picked it up and held it in his palm for a little while, just staring, before he sighed and slipped it into his pocket. He cast a glance at the counter and felt his shoulders slump in defeat.

He didn't have the energy to start smelling even stronger chemicals and scrubbing away at the counter and floor until his fingers were chapped and raw with over-use. Not to mention the mix of chemicals and the chlorine in the pool at his training session tomorrow evening wouldn't exactly go well together.

Heaving a sigh of defeat he went over to the sofa and swiped up his phone from the coffee table. The sofa sank under his weight as he collapsed down onto it as he searched through his contacts. The entire time he was scrolling through, a small voice at the back of his head kept chanting, ' _You have a MERMAN in your BATHTUB!_ '

He squeezed his eyes and tried to ease the impending headache with the heel of his hand pressing against his temples. He cast a quick glance at his laptop and almost reached for, content with ignoring reality for that moment longer however the voice in his head was admonishing him for being ridiculous.

With another sigh, he pressed a few buttons on his touchscreen before holding the phone to his ear and listening to the dial tone.

Someone picked up. " _Hello?"_

"Hey Makoto, it's me. I'm … er … just returning your call."


	4. IV

**IV**

The following morning, Rin couldn't deny that he felt a little better. His talk with Makoto the evening before has calmed his nerves. They'd discussed what Rin had missed during the training session he'd missed the evening before. He'd just about gotten away with it with a text he'd shot off to his instructor whilst the bath had been filling up. He'd turned his phone on silent to avoid the angry call that he knew was inevitable. However, he'd called Makoto up as soon as he reckoned the tall man was home from practice. It hadn't been a long conversation by any means, but they had chatted, deciphered that Rin was not technically in trouble for skipping one practice, but he needed to not let it happen again.

Once all that had been sorted and he'd gone in to check on the, oddly enough, snoozing merman, he'd decided to head up to his own bedroom and see if the last day and a half had been nothing more than a surreal dream.

Unfortunately, when he heard a loud splash of water echo up from downstairs, he knew with great clarity that it hadn't been a dream.

He'd gone about his own business of the morning, washing, dressing and preparing himself a quick breakfast to help him get him through until lunchtime. When his stomach rumbled as he whisked some eggs in a bowl, his mind was wrenched back to the soft sound of moving water in the bathroom down the hall. The merman hadn't eaten since who knew when. He chewed on the inside of his cheek as he heard the water lapping within the bath. He set the bowl on the countertop and walked out of the kitchen.

Upon entering the bathroom he was assaulted with the odour of fish. He wrinkled his nose as he turned his attention to the merman who was staring up at him, only the top half of his face visible through the water. The water itself had gone a little cloudy no doubt from all the dirt Rin had been unable to clean off him.

Rin tilted his head to the side to regard the merman, "Did you sleep okay?"

The merman stared at him for a while and Rin could do nothing more than sigh. He settled down on the edge of the closed toilet lid, his bare feet tensing over the warm floor tiles. "Look, you're going to have to help me out some more than this," he indicated to the tub the merman was slouched in. "I can't keep guessing what you want to say, or what you're thinking. You need to help me out."

The merman had the nerve to blow bubbles at him.

Rin scowled down at him. "I'm being serious. I don't even know what to call you. I can't keep calling you … Well … 'you'! it's ridiculous!"

More bubbles.

Rin ground his teeth together. "You know what, if that's all you're going to do for the foreseeable future then maybe I will just call you 'bubbles'. I mean, sure you'll sound like a hooker but who cares, because you can't talk to me!"

The merman stared up at him for a moment with heavily-lidded eyes before ducking completely under the water. Rin was about to get up off the toilet when its head popped back up and a shot of water doused his pyjamas bottoms. He leapt up and gaped at his sodden trousers, "What the hell was that for?" he cried out as he quickly tugged the wet garments down. He was left standing in his damp boxers and a t-shirt as he glared down at the merman who had a very vague smile turning his mouth upwards. Rin could do nothing except roll his eyes as he left the bathroom, "Stupid fish!"

He grumbled all the way upstairs to his room and quickly dressed for the day. He grabbed his keys and quickly cleaned up everything in the kitchen. He could eat on the way back from his run. With another look down the hallway at the bathroom, he decided to grab some more money. He needed to find something for the big stupid fish to eat.

As he locked the front door behind him he shivered at the wind that clawed at his hoodie. The rain had stopped for the time being so he was prepared to take some time to enjoy the lack of it. He stretched out over the front porch and as soon as his trainers touched down on the main pavement, he was filled with a burst of adrenaline. He steadily picked up his pace so that he was soon jogging up through the town. There were barely any people out, the damp weather keeping most of them inside. The few that had braved the outdoors were hurrying back and forth in their cars.

He made it past the fish market and slowed down, his eyes drawn to all the varieties laid out in tubs of ice. The smell made his stomach coil but he braved it for a moment longer before carrying on. He needed something to eat himself before he could let his mind wonder to his new 'pet'. He hurried along to the nearest café and made his way inside, the sudden warmth making his skin break out in goosepimples and his body to shiver. He was a little happier in the queue when he was standing under the overhead heater. By the time he made it up to be served he wasn't as cold as he had been.

"What would you like?" asked the bored-looking assistant behind the till.

"Can I have a large coffee, a bacon butty and a tea-cake please?"

The guy rang everything up the total. Rin quickly paid and then went to the end of the counter to collect the tray with his order on it. Checking the clock on the wall, he made sure that he had enough time before his morning lessons before digging into the hot, greasy food.

Once he'd eaten and checked his emails on his phone while he waited for his food to go down before reluctantly leaving the warmth of the café and heading back through the wind towards home.

On the way back through he finally stopped at the fish market. As he looked at all the cold, scaly flesh he wrinkled his nose at the smell. He honestly couldn't tell which one would be better for silly 'Bubbles' back in his bathtub. His cash was limited since he'd bought a rather large breakfast for himself. Eventually he sighed, rubbed the back of his neck and managed to attract the attention of the gloomy looking salesman. In the end, he walked away with a carrier bag full of a couple of fish; trout, salmon, tuna, mackerel, cod and place. One of them was bound to be appealing to the creature.

He paid the man and made his way home, the bag of fish swinging from his hand.

~0~

As he kicked his front door shut he felt his stomach clench at the sight of water leaking out from underneath the bathroom door. It had stretched out in a stream right down the length of the hallway. "What the fuck?" he cursed as he sloshed through to the kitchen and dumped the bag of fish on the side before hurrying down to the bathroom. He tried to open the door but was stopped by a heavy weight resting against it. He pushed and pushed and eventually managed to get the door open wide enough to stick his head around the frame. "Oh Jesus!" he gasped as he saw the creatures tail flopping uselessly on the tiled floor. He hurried to the cupboard under the stairs and turned off the heating for the floors. Who knew how long the merman had been lying on the warmed tiles? He had no idea what would happen, but he didn't want to risk more trauma.

Forcing all of his weight against the door he continued to force it until it was just wide enough for him to ease inside. The weight of the tail forced it locked with a 'BANG!'

"What the hell did you do?" he cried out, looking down at all the grimy water swilling everywhere. Even his grandparents hadn't made this much mess. Ducking over the side of the tub he grimaced at the few blackened scales that had sunk to the bottom. Pulling the plug out along with the drain-guard, he quickly rinsed it all down the drain and then tried his best to clear the scum from the sides of the tub.

Turning back to the merman sprawled awkwardly in the confined space, he grabbed him from under his arms and hauled the limp creature up and back into the clean tub. He frowned at the crusted scales that had fallen off and onto the tiled floor but didn't pay much attention to it. He had bigger concerns, like the thick line of raw, seeping flesh running down the middle of the creatures tail. Had that been where the scales had fallen from?

Rin turned the taps on full so that the fresh, clean water splashed down into the tub, dousing the creature's tail in tepid waves. He reached out as the creature wheezed and gasped out, its gills stretching awkward at his neck as though they were gummed down from lack of use. How strange. Rin reached down and smoothed his cool wet fingers down the length of the raw red flesh. "Does this hurt?" he asked.

The merman lurched forward with an ear-piercing screech.

Rin winced and jerked his hand away, the sight of those teeth and nails sending chills through him. "I take that as a 'yes' then."

Leaning away from the edge of the tub, Rin ran his hand through his hair and down the back of his neck. What was he going to do? Perhaps it was just what happened with old, rotten scales? After all he had a merman in his bathtub, how was he going to know it's healing methods when it couldn't even talk properly? Sighing heavily, he turned the taps off just as the water crept up and completely submerged the creatures' tail. "There you go, now no more of this bid for freedom crap, got it?" he flicked water at the creatures face, taking a small amount of pleasure in watching the merman flinch and glare up at him, "Bad fishy, making such a mess."

His trainers' sloshed through the water as he got to the door. He groaned; he really needed to mop the place up. "You know, I think I'd prefer a suicidal goldfish," he grimaced down at the creature before deciding to leave and fetch the mop and bucket from the kitchen.

Mopping the hallway and the bathroom was a long and arduous task, one he suddenly had a newfound respect towards his mother for undertaking without complaint. His back ached a little and, with a cursory glance to his watch, determined that he had missed his morning lecture. He really needed to get better at shortening his runs. Once the floors were drying out, he went back into the kitchen and opened the windows to let in the cold, wet air. The kitchen reeked of fish but other than putting the packs into the freezer there wasn't much else he could do.

Casting a look at the bathroom door, Rin decided to hurry up the stairs and have a shower in the second bathroom. He couldn't afford to miss anymore lectures. Makoto could only cover for him for so long, and even Sousuke was growing irate at his lack of commitment to the swimming team practices.

He missed the swimming too.

And his friends, of course, but mostly the swimming; in the water he was able to feel connected and free to swim as fast or as slow as he wanted. He had complete control of the environment around him.

Once he was out of the shower and dried off, he cast a cursory glance at his watch as he was shoving the last of his books in his messenger bag. 10:30AM. He only had half an hour to get to his second lecture. "Fuck!" he cursed out loud, before tearing down the staircase and out the front door, thoughts of the merman and cooking fish far from his mind as he ran down the street at break-neck speed.

He managed to catch his train and hurried into the assigned lecture hall with two minutes to spare. He slammed through the door and panted heavily, his heart aching in his chest. The entire room turned to stare at him. He felt his cheeks flame up a brilliant pink under the weight of all those eyes watching him, silently judging him. He'd never been late before, absent yes, but never late. Okay, so he technically wasn't late but it was close enough and he was still disturbing the class.

Clearing his throat, he straightened up and made his way to the only available seat which was next to Rei. Makoto gave him a sympathetic look as he passed by the tall man's row of chairs. Slipping into the vacant seat, Rin quickly took his books out of his messenger bag and started to quickly write down the notes that everyone else had already copied down. As their professor started talking and explaining the days plan, Rin felt his mobile vibrate in his pocket. Taking it out, he tried to be discreet as he opened the message. It was from Makoto;

' _You got here just in time. I was worried I'd have to cover for you again. What's going on?_ '

Rin blanched and hesitated before quickly tapping out a reply before sending it.

' _Just a funny turn the other day, I suppose. I'll be alright, don't worry about me._ '

He knew it was silly to tell Makoto not to worry. The taller man was nothing but concern and compassion wrapped in a neat little bow. He was practically the polar opposite of Sousuke which was almost as refreshing. Rin tried to focus on the lecture but couldn't really pay attention to what was being said. For the most part he copied Rei's notes over the bespectacled teen's shoulder. When the time the bell chimed for the end of the lecture Rin grimaced down at his notebook; he'd only gone and doodled bloody bubbled in the margins! What would his professor say about that when he handed it in?

Rin let out a heavy groan as walked out of the lecture hall and collapsed back against the wall of the lockers. Makoto came up to him then, "Are you going to tell me what this is about?" he asked gently.

Rin cracked an eyelid open and peered up at him, "Don't worry yourself, Makoto. Seriously I'm fine."

The tall green-haired man shrugged, "If you say so. Will you be at swimming practice tonight?"

Rin nodded, "Of course, but I need to stop off at home first. It won't take me too long, though. I just need to check on things now that mum and Gou are away for a while."

Makoto nodded and then grinned at him, "How is Gou doing? Have you heard from them?"

Rin felt his neck heat up with guilt. He'd actually forgotten to call his mother or Gou to make sure they'd gotten there safely. Perhaps he would do that when he got home, whilst waiting for all that fish to cook. God, the house was going to stink! Rin rubbed the back of his neck, "I haven't been able to get through. Bad service I think. I'll be calling her when I get back to make sure everything is going well."

Makoto clapped him on the shoulder, "Well make sure that you're there on time, tonight. Sousuke has threatened to cut your hair off if you don't show up. Plus, I saw him buying a pair of gardening shears, so I think he means it."

Rin cocked a disbelieving eyebrow at Makoto but didn't rise to the bait. He knew Sousuke; the man was dedicated but when it came to handiwork he was lazy as sin. He wouldn't buy gardening shears not even if his own mother had given him the money and asked him to do so. He'd have ordered a pair online and left it at that. Kept the change for pocket money.

"Makoto, I'll be at swimming practice okay? Let's just go and eat before Nagisa turns into a cannibal waiting for us."

Makoto and Rei couldn't help but chuckle as they turned and followed the red-haired teen down the bustling corridor towards the dining hall.

Nagisa caught sight of them as soon as they entered the hall. "Rin-chan!" he cried out, waving energetically from his seat. He'd somehow managed to save an entire table just for them. Rei adjusted his glasses with a sigh, "We'd better hurry up, he's getting impatient now that he knows we're here." They bought their food and made their way over to the large circular table Nagisa was waving them down from.

"Oh, Rin-chan it's been so long that you've been at swim practice! Sousuke's been harassing us for information on you! He thinks we're trying to steal you!" Nagisa bemoaned with a flourish of his hands.

Rin snorted as he grabbed his hamburger with two hands, "I highly doubt that you're in any danger from Sousuke, Nagisa."

The petite blonde pouted before turning a curious eye back to Rin. "So, where have you been the last two days? Did you have to help Gou-chan go off on her year holiday?"

Rin shook his head, "No, I saw them off first thing in the morning and then I went for a jog. I must have pulled something along the beach. It's healed now; I just needed to rest for a bit."

"Oh good, so you're coming to the joint swimming practice tonight?" Rei asked rhetorically.

Rin inclined his head, "Of course. I wouldn't miss a joint practice, especially when the chance of me and Sousuke kicking your butts is climbing through the roof as we speak."

Rei snorted as Makoto laughed good-naturedly and shrugged the matter aside. They talked about tedious schoolwork and projects for their upcoming professors that were underway. Rin felt himself relax a lot as the usual day unravelled around him and he let himself be swept away on the tide or normalcy. So much so that he'd almost completely forgotten about the creature lying about in his bathtub until he'd gotten home later that afternoon. Unfortunately, the faint smell of fish from the kitchen and the raw lemony scent of the floor-cleaner that had been used to scrub the floors clean that morning.

Dropping his backpack down behind the front door he cast his eye over the glossy, laminate flooring and suddenly felt a weight drop down onto his shoulders. Did he really have to spend the next hour or so cooking various fish just to see which one the stupid creature preferred?

It wasn't exactly his idea to de-stress himself before swimming practice, but he supposed that it had to be done.

"Alright you sodding fish, you'd better appreciate this!" he called out down the hallway before reluctantly turning into the kitchen and mentally preparing himself as he heated up the ovens.

The smell almost killed him. He had never loathed fish so much in his entire life as he sliced the belly of a small cod. He remembered the salesman frowning when Rin had requested all the small fish of each kind. Usually the tiddlers didn't sell well if at all, but he wasn't about to spend good money on fish that was going to go in the bin after a mouthful. Grimacing, he waited for the pieces to finish cooking before he added them to the plate set on the counter. These were the last couple of pieces, and then he was done cooking for the night. He didn't think he could stomach touching anymore raw animal bits. He didn't know if the merman would eat cooked fish, the thought dampening his mood a little, but he reasoned that if nothing else, they could both learn from this experience.

With his stomach rolling around inside him, he picked up the plate and strode down the hall to the bathroom. He wanted to get this experience over with as soon as possible. Knocking on the door to announce himself, he straightened up and twisted the handle, "I'm coming in! Make yourself decent!"

He almost laughed at the stupid joke. Almost.

He was surprised when he walked in to find the merman in a sitting position with his tail bunched against his chest, almost like someone who was holding their legs up. Rin was caught off-guard by the change in position. The only time he'd seen the creature mobile was when they struggled together at the beach. Closing the bathroom door he set the plate of fish on the side and crouched down on the toilet seat. He leaned forward and peered closer at the merman's features; his gills still looked like they were gumming together and the dry skin on his face looking scaly and rough. He reached out hesitantly before tentatively touching the creature's cheek. It flinched but didn't move out of Rin's reach. His cheek was clammy as though he was starting to break a fever any minute. Could it be the lack of food? Well, luckily Rin was there to fix that particular issue.

"I've brought you something to eat," he finally said, breaking the heavy silence between them. His fingertips still tingled where they'd brushed against the merman's cheek. He reached for the plate, "I didn't know which fish you'd prefer so I got a few different ones. Let me know which one you prefer okay?"

The heavy eyelids closed for a moment, before a small almost imperceptible nod cause Rin's stomach to knot.

"Okay," Rin licked his lips. "Open your mouth," he instructed raising the small piece to the merman's mouth. His fingers trembled a little as the dark indigo eyes looked down at the offering. The gills flared underneath the film of skin. Rin jumped back a little as the merman snatched the soft, white flesh between his teeth and guzzled it down in the blink of an eye. Rin's heart was in his throat as he sat frozen on the toilet seat, watching.

The creature let out a choked sound before it lifted a slimy pale hand and forced two fingers into his mouth. Grimacing a little, it searched around before extracting a small pearly bone and flicked it over at Rin. The red-haired teen flushed a little awkwardly, "Oh … Sorry about that. The guy told me they were boneless fillets."

The creature huffed a little before opening its mouth for the second piece. Rin rolled his eyes and obediently dropped a second piece into the creatures waiting mouth. He watched almost in satisfaction as the merman patiently accept each piece of fish after that, the brush of his lips against Rin's fingertips making his stomach flip strangely.

Rin watched in fascination the way the creature moved; the muscles it had were reminiscent of a swimmer's that much was obvious. He'd be worried if the merman didn't have that network of muscles, all things considered. Truly entranced, he reached out with his free hand and stroked along the wet trails running down the creature's back. The merman froze as his fingertips gently stroked down the soft skin. He watched Rin with dark eyes that could drown a person if stared into for too long.

Rin's watch beeped, shattering the moment. He grimaced and drew back, the merman swallowing the last of the fish bites. "Sorry, I need to go for swimming practice. If I miss another session I'll get kicked off the team. Will you be alright for a few more hours?" he asked, suddenly aware that the merman wasn't like a goldfish at all. That he might actually have a problem with Rin disappearing for a while.

"I promise I won't be more than a couple of hours. I know you don't have a concept of time but just … I'll be back," he assured, rubbing the back of his neck before sighing and leaving the bathroom.

He went up to his bedroom and quickly packed his swimming stuff in his shoulder-bag. As he locked the front door behind him, he felt his muscles growing tense as he hopped down from the porch and briskly walking back along the familiar route to the swimming pool where they usually practiced. He clenched his fingers into tight fists as he marched further away from the house, responding to Makoto's messages that he was, in fact, on his way.

The sooner he got to practice the sooner it would all be over and he could go back to check on his merman.


	5. V

**V**

Just over a week and a half later Rin had to admit that he'd managed to get himself into a routine.

May had broken through into his life and he had a little trouble adjusting to the new warmth and the constant assurance of a bright blue sky.

He had managed to keep everything on-point since the bathroom incident with 'Bubbles', however, it did mean that he had to re-route himself at least once a week on his mornings runs and make a detour down to the fish-market. Despite having eaten all of the fish bits Rin had cooked, it turned out that Mackerel seemed to be the favourite of the merman.

The fact that Rin still had no idea was to call the creature other than 'Bubbles' was becoming increasingly strange as well, especially when talking to himself.

Things were getting a little awkward with his inability to have his friends over, like he would have done as soon as Gou and his mother had left for their travels. So far none of them had commented on it, just yet, but he knew that it was only a matter of time before Nagisa squealed it out in the middle of the cafeteria at school.

He couldn't keep blaming the 'poor plumbing system'.

By the time he climbed out of the swimming pool after team practice that evening, his brain was water-logged and his eyes stung from where the chlorine had leaked a little through his goggles. They were rather dated; he needed to invest in a new pair before the championships started next month. He hoisted himself up onto the side and drew in long, calming breaths before climbing out completely and heading over to the stands, water running off of his body in streams.

He swiped his towel from the iron rungs by the pool, and quickly rubbed himself down as well as ruffling his hair as he lazily strolled around to the changing room entrance. Sousuke clapped him on the back as they wondered into the changing room and grabbed shampoo from their lockers. Ordinarily, Rin didn't like using the public showers, however in order to keep up the pretence of still having 'plumbing issues' he needed to keep showering at the pools for a little while longer.

"I think my shoulder's playing up again," Sousuke grumbled as he ducked his head out from the spray and lathered his hair.

"I keep telling you to go to the doctors about that. Or get therapy," Rin stated as he closed his eyes and tipped his head back into the spray to rinse himself down.

"The effort and money that would take would distract me from training. Besides, everyone says that swimming is the best course of therapy."

"Yes, but I doubt that's applicable when you're injury was caused by swimming," Rin bit out.

"Sousuke, just go to the doctors at least," Makoto cut in from a shower a little way down the line. "It won't do you any harm, plus they might be able to suggest a salve for the strained muscles. That's what they did when my little brother strained his muscles playing football at school."

"If you two don't shut up, I'll get you both for harassment."

Rin scowled in disapproval whilst Makoto merely laughed good-naturedly before turning his shower off and wrapping a towel around his waist. He was one of the few who ever risked stripping down in the shower cubicles and washed all his junk openly. Rin hadn't even liked showering at the pools, let alone stripping down. He had to make sure to be focusing on his own cleaning rather than witnessing just how impressive Makoto's endowment was.

The guy was  _far_  too modest.

"Who wants dinner?" Nagisa piped up as they all filed out of the pool house and into the warm evening air. Everyone had damp hair, but thankfully it wouldn't be an issue for any of them.

"Nagisa do you think of anything other than your stomach?" Rei asked dryly as they walked along the pavement and into the town centre.

"Yes, I think of eating and swimming!" he grinned cheekily up at his bespectacled friend. Rei groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Awe come on Rei-chan! It's been ages since we all had something to eat! I don't know about you but that practice worked up my appetite!"

"Nagisa, breathing works up your appetite," Rin deadpanned, causing Sousuke to chuckle and Makoto to laugh out loud.

Rei sighed with a smile, "Okay let's go and eat. There's a restaurant not too far from here. We can go there. It's pretty good and affordable. Plus, students get free dessert."

"Oh that sounds great!" Nagisa chirruped.

"What if students don't want dessert?" Rin asked, glancing sideways at Rei.

The bespectacled boy shrugged, "Then I guess Nagisa gets too desserts."

Everyone laughed as Nagisa practically bounced with excitement. Rin smiled despite himself. It was nice being 'part of the group' again. He'd been unwillingly feeling as though he was becoming an outside despite already going to separate schools. They'd always hung out together outside of training sessions and classes, however since the merman had washed-up into his life he couldn't deny feeling somewhat more alienated that normal.

Sousuke's hand came down heavily on his shoulder, pulling him to a stop. Rin was about to snap at him for being too rough, when he noticed everyone else already walking into a small restaurant he'd almost completely bypassed. He'd been too engrossed in the knowledge of the merman being restricted and bored in his downstairs bathroom.

As they were shown to a table, sliding onto the benches and handed the glossy menus, Rin couldn't deny that he was really relieved for the chance to be outside with people he liked spending time with, and enjoying their company. He felt like a normal young adult again. He hadn't realised how confined he'd been in the last month until that moment.

He was determined to make the best of it while it lasted.

"Anyone fancy splitting some dumplings?" Rei asked as his eyes scanned over the menu. There were a few murmurs of agreement from the others as Makoto quickly placed their drink order.

Rei sighed as the waiter took their menus from them. He rubbed his temples before frowning, "I still think that our team is lacking," he commented, more to Makoto than anyone else. "We don't have anyone who is able to swim free-style. That's the one thing we're lacking in."

Rin frowned but couldn't help but agree, "Is Otori not good enough, then?"

"Otori is fine for the most part, but clearly not fast enough, especially if his opponent is you," Rei said.

Makoto nodded, "Unfortunately, no one else seems to put up any kind of challenge. We can just hope to up our own times to make up for Otori's pace."

"That's a lot of effort, isn't it? You three pushing yourselves even faster?" Sousuke cocked a dark eyebrow.

Makoto smiled softly, "Yes it is, but what else can we do? We can hold more try-outs but somehow I don't think many will come forward. Otori was one of the fastest."

"He was one of your fastest?" Rin asked, spluttering a little. "How slow were the other ones? Did they drown half way through?"

Makoto laughed good-naturedly. "They weren't that bad, it just so happened that Otori was a little faster, that's all."

"Would it be worth holding another set of try-outs?" Sousuke asked.

Makoto shrugged, "I honestly don't know. Championships aren't until July. We'll have to see how things go this month before registering everything. Maybe we'll hold try-outs next month just for a substitute or something."

"It's definitely worth considering, especially if you want to place this year," Rin cut in just as the waiter came up to their table with large, rounded bowls filled with an assortment of noodles, rice, chicken, sweet and sour pork, dumplings and prawns.

"Thank God! I thought my stomach was going to eat itself!" Nagisa grinned as he started to load food onto his plate in a huge mountain. Rin wondered where the little blonde boy put half the stuff he ate. He was as thin as a rake!

They started to eat in a companionable silence, chatting here and there about classes, homework assignments and plans for the summer holidays now that the weather was improving. No one dared to talk about what they might be considering doing after they graduated and had to move on. Rin didn't like thinking about those sorts of things. He still wasn't entirely sure; if he was able to qualify for championships he could always return to Australia. Sometimes he really missed it there.

By the time they had finished eating and Nagisa had stuffed his face with three different desserts –Makoto and Rin had declined the offer –they paid their share of the combined meal and left. Rei and Nagisa caught the train downtown and they all waited for Makoto's bus to take him uptown. Rin and Sousuke were left to walk along the beach closely towards where Rin lived. Sousuke didn't live too far from him. He was still staying in the school dorms but since Rin's mother's house was relatively close, there was no point in him paying board when he could simply stay at home.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning," Sousuke finally said through the quiet night air, clapping Rin on the back.

Rin nodded his head, "Sounds good. Don't sleep on your stomach or you'll get ill."

Sousuke rolled his eyes before smirking and continuing on his way down the road. Rin was left to walk up the stone pathway alone.

The house was dark as the front door swung inwards. A shiver ran through him as he switched the lights on as he walked through. He cranked the heating up for the living room and then ventured into the kitchen after kicking his shoes off in the hallway. He was glad he didn't have to cook for himself tonight. Raking a hand through his hair he decided to check in on the merman before heading to bed for an early night. He didn't really have the energy to stay up too much later, not after that practice.

He couldn't deny that he was a little on edge about going in to see the merman. The long patch of raw flesh where the scales had rotted away and fallen off was growing wider, the skin a mix of pale flesh colour mixed with the raw redness from where the most recent scales had fallen off. The amount of times that Rin had needed to drain the bath and scrub the scum that had formed around the brim of the bathtub, was coming up to at least once every other day now. The water bill was going to be through the roof and he had no idea what to do about it.

He had been away all day, so the merman hadn't eaten yet. He felt a little better about the prawns he'd brought home from the restaurant; they wouldn't be that filling but hopefully they would help until he could go to the market in the morning.

Rin knocked on the door of the bathroom. Naturally there was no response so he merely called out, "I'm coming in!"

Thankfully when he went into the bathroom this time, there was no water on the floor. It was a small relief. However, as soon as he looked into the tub itself he felt sick to his stomach. The water was practically grey with the rotten skin that had pulled away from under the scales, he could only guess how many scales were cluttered at the bottom of the tub before turning his attention to the merman sitting in the mess.

"Holy shit!" he exclaimed, his eyes going wide. He knelt down next to the tub so hard he felt his bones knock together. He plunged his hand into the slimy mess and tugged the plug out. The water start to gurgle as the drain gulped it down. A grey ring of scum still clung to the tub and Rin groaned, feeling a migraine starting up. He would need to take time out of his weekend to scrub the shit from the tub. As the water drained away, Rin turned to the merman had touched his shoulder, "Hey, hey are you okay?"

The merman opened his bleary eyes. Thankfully they didn't seem gummed together like they had been in previous weeks. He'd just been asleep that was all. Rin breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed a little against the rim of tub. The merman croaked weakly as he shifted his head, the gills at his neck had practically gummed over completely. They were practically nothing more than just dark pink ridges in his throat. Rin frowned as the merman's dark blue eyes drifted closed again. He looked a little peaky.

Pressing the back of his hand to the merman's forehead and grimaced at how hot the creature's skin was. "You're burning up," he observed before grabbing the removable showerhead, turned the taps on until the water ran warm, and started to house the merman down from neck to fins and back again. Grey gunge sluiced off and struggled to sift down the drain. "I didn't think fish could get fevers," he murmured as he reluctantly used his hands to help pull off long filmy strips of grey skin from the tail where the scales had chipped off.

Wetting a flannel with tepid water, he pressed it against the merman's forehead and hoped it would balance whilst he cleared out the clumps of skin and dead scales that hadn't washed down the drain. Using his hand, he scooped them up and over the brim and into the small bin he was holding on the other side. As soon as the tub was empty of skin and scales, he grabbed another flannel, rinsed it, and tried his hardest to scrub roughly at the ring of grime around the top of the bathtub, to make his task on the weekend easier.

It took about twenty minutes for the hot flush to finally ebb away, by which time Rin had refilled the tub with warm water that would quickly cool, and went out to the turn the under-floor heating down a little just in-case the fever spiked up again. "Are you hungry?" he asked as he sat cross-legged on the floor, resting his head on the end of the bath as he looked up at the submerged creature. "I have some prawns I can give you. It's not a lot but I'll go to the fish market first thing in the morning, okay?" he kept his voice soft and low, not wanting his headache or the one the merman no doubt had to grow any worse.

The merman tilted his head a little so that he was able to nod. His chest was heaving as he breathed shakily. Rin offered a small, reassuring smile before inclining his head and stood up, "Alright let me go and get it."

He walked out of the bathroom and went into the kitchen where he'd dumped the small take-out carton of prawns. For some reason no one had wanted the side order of prawns, despite ordering a large tray of them. Oh well, more for the merman. He came back into the bathroom, carton in hand along with a pair of chopsticks, and stopped in the doorway of the bathroom. He hadn't noticed the tail-fins earlier when he'd been draining the bathtub, however now that he had the vantage point of being upright over the tub, he was able to see that the tail-fins had shrunk drastically compared to the previous month.

How could he not have noticed that?

Before they had been at least the length of his arm and now they were narrower and rather stubby in comparison, they looked to be no longer than fourteen inches. The fins seemed to be now the same length of the tail itself, and no longer needed to flop over the end of the tub.

Was there anything he could do about it? How could he do anything if he didn't know  _what_  to do? It was hardly like there were any merman medical journals online.

Settling down on the floor beside the tub he couldn't help but smile a little as he held up a prawn and held it out in between them so that the merman could crane his neck a little and draw the piece in with his teeth. He chewed and grimaced a little as though in pain, before he swallowed stiffly and promptly opened his mouth for another piece. Rin chuckled quietly as he dipped the chopsticks back into the carton and pluck up another piece. "I wasn't sure if you would like these," he said as the merman chewed on another prawn, "I went out for dinner and no one wanted the prawns. I'm just glad they're not making you sick. I always worry about feeding you."

The merman tilted his head in a strange expression as he swallowed and opened his mouth to croak a little.

Rin smiled sadly and shook his head. "I really wish you could talk," he sighed softly, "I think it would make this whole 'taking care of you' thing a lot easier."

As soon as the entire carton of prawns had been eaten, Rin set the chopsticks and carton aside before leaning over and pressing his hand to the merman's forehead. "You're definitely a lot cooler now. Hopefully you don't get another fever otherwise I'm doing to have to give you some medicine and … I'm not sure if you'll keep them down."

Rin glanced at his watch and groaned, "Okay I need to head to bed. Are you going to be alright tonight?"

The merman gave a stiff little nod as Rin stood up from the toilet seat. Just as he was leaving the bathroom, his heart jumped in his chest when the merman's hand lurched up and grabbed onto his forearm. Rin was surprised at just how strong the creature was, all things considered. He would have stepped away but he was too stunned to do anything as the merman started to heave heavily, making rough, rasping 'hah-hah-hah' sounds, like a cat trying to hack up a fur-ball.

Rin grimaced and had to look away for a brief second just in case the creature  _did_  throw up the prawns.

"Hah-Hah-Hah!" the creature's grip on his arm tightened as he shifted awkwardly in the tub, his eyes getting misty as though he was struggling not to cry.

"Jesus, you're hurting me!" Rin groaned. He tried to take a step back but the merman held fast.

"Hah-hah-hah-HARU!" he finally croaked out, his voice breaking as he fell sideways onto the brim of the tub, his nails digging sharply into Rin's flesh.

Rin frowned, not believing his ears as he stared down at the sweaty creature in his bathroom. "W-what did you just say?" he breathed.

"Haru …" the creature rasped out, his grip on Rin's arm finally loosening before his hand dropped away completely, "My … Name … Haru …"

Rin could only shift backwards until his back collided with the door. He felt as though in a trance as he groped behind him uselessly before he found the doorknob, twisted it and promptly dropped out into the hallway, slamming the door closed behind him. Staring down the dark hallway without really seeing it, he tried to focus on getting his hammering heart and breathing so slow down back to their normal pace. A shiver ran through him and he huddled over, hugging his torso as he turned the lights off without truly realising what he was doing.

Wiping a hand down his face as he finished brushing his teeth, he leaned his forehead against the mirror and felt his stomach knot as goosepimples prickled over his skin. The creature had spoken; for some reason he hadn't anticipated it ever being able to speak after so long. He smiled as looked up at his reflection and rubbed at his arm, "Haru …"

It was a nice name; it had definitely left its mark on his arm … as well as his dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in updates. I lost my notes but have found them again! Let me know what you think of this so far! Xx


	6. VI

**VI**

Despite the very minor shift in their current arrangement, Rin felt a huge weight shift off his mind now that his merman had a name.

Whenever he thought of the merman -which was becoming a lot lately -he felt his stomach flip a little as the name 'Haru' fluttered through his mind like a cloud of butterflies. He still had yet to tell anyone about his merman. The speculation and horror he felt whenever the idea rushed through his mind, made his muscles tense to stone. Not to mention he didn't know what else to do in regards to the scales rotting off Haru's tail. The fins had almost completely shrunken and Rin couldn't deny just how worried he was about it.

It wasn't like he could ask anyone, though, and he'd completely exhausted the resources on the internet.

Unfortunately even Haru wasn't able to do more than offer a couple of words at a time.

Rin had to admit that now they'd broken that one barrier, he wanted to keep going and get the back-story or just any information the creature had to offer him. He couldn't deny how curious he was. He itched to spend the entire day locked away in his bathroom and try to gauge as much as he could. He knew it was silly, but the urge was growing.

It was the tail that was worrying him the most; he didn't understand the degradation of the tail itself, not to mention the fact that only about a quarter of the tail was covered in scales now. The rest looked like a raw red mass of muscle with a deep, festering groove down the middle. The groove itself was darkening and growing deeper. Rin couldn't deny just how anxious it was making him, especially when Haru didn't seem necessarily alarmed by any of it. Then again he was staring at the damned thing every second of the day, so Rin wasn't sold on how much to trust the creature's judgement.

By now the weather was getting incredibly hot and Rin had no choice but to clean and fill the pool in his back garden. If he was going to be cooped up watching over the merman, then he was going to get some exercise goddamnit! He refused to get soft just because he was babysitting a giant goldfish.

As it was a hot Saturday he felt that he had nothing better to do than get to cleaning the pool. He left his phone on the counter and had turned the volume down so that he could work in silence for a while, without being disturbed by Makoto or Sousuke texting him to ask if he was free. The entire pool took over two hours to clean out completely, the early season storms having blown half a tree into the bottom of the tiled hole.

Glancing around him he couldn't help but think that maybe Haru would benefit from the pool being refilled? Maybe Rin could carry him out while he was at school and practice and let him swim around? It wasn't the worst idea he'd ever had.

Perhaps that could be his ambition for tomorrow. It would take the rest of the afternoon to fill the pool and make sure everything was still in working order.

By the time everything was done, he was sweating and exhausted as the water splashed down in the long since disused pool. It was calming as he peeled his shirt off over his head and went back inside through the back door. Mopping his forehead with his shirt, he went about making himself some lunch and whilst it was cooking he went into the bathroom with a cold plate of cut mackerel from the fridge. Padding into the bathroom he settled down on the toilet seat and smiled at Haru who was busy peeling small, smooth scales from the ugly, red stump that was now his tail. The fins had completely gone by this point.

"Doesn't that hurt you?" he asked as he looked at the glossy, meaty tail, the deep groove almost running all the way through. Rin couldn't deny just how much he was anxious to see what happened next. Would there be any bone inside it? There had to be some bones in there, surely?

Haru didn't answer right away, which is essentially the way he always replied. Rin shifted and leaned a little closer as he held out a piece of fish. Haru obediently opened his mouth and sucked the fish in, his soft lips rubbing over Rin's fingertips. His eyelids drifted shut and he smiled a little as he swallowed. "S'Good …" he managed to croak.

"I'm glad you like it," Rin smiled softly, "Open up."

Haru obeyed and spent more time with his lips around Rin's fingers than on chewing the bite-sized pieces of fish. Rin didn't pull away but couldn't deny the strange squirming in his stomach. He leaned over a little more and swiped some grease from Haru's lips. The merman blinked at the gentle touch before his steady eyes went back up to Rin's. Clearing his throat the redhead raked a hand through his hair. Clearing his throat the redhead raked a hand through his hair. "I've cleaned out the swimming pool. Once it's filled up do you want to go for a swim?"

Haru's eyes seemed to light up for a brief second before he glanced down at the red mess that was his tail. With a sigh, he shook his head and leaned his chin down on the stiff bend in his tail where his 'knees' would've been if he were human. "No … Swim …"

"Why not?" Rin frowned.

"Tail … Won't work …" he screwed up his eyes as though concentrating incredibly hard on how or what to say. "Can't … Swim …"

"Has this happened before and you've not been able to swim?" Rin asked, offering another piece of fish in between his fingers. Haru shook his head slowly. "Well then how do you know?"

"Can't ... Swim … Tail hurts," he croaked.

"Oh," was all Rin could say as his eyes roamed over the red, raw mass of his tail. "Is there anything I can do?" he asked as he reached down and tentatively ran his fingers up over the slimy flesh. It made his skin crawl a little as he unwillingly pulled away a handful of the red flesh. Was it all loose? Was it all just a giant, squishy red sock? A lump caught in his throat as he tossed the raw meat into the bin under the sink. He hoped it wouldn't leak onto the floor.

"Don't … Know …" was all Haru managed to say before he reached over and plucked a piece of fish from the plate.

"Do you want to try it out later on and see how things go?" Rin asked. He wasn't used to Haru being so chatty but it was a nice change of pace.

Haru nodded, the corner of his mouth twitching a little, "Y-Yes … Try …"

Rin smiled, "Good. Now eat your fish, I need to go and take a shower." He stood up and balanced the plate of fish on the end of the tub before stretching his muscles, "Alright I'll be right back and then we can see about getting you into that pool."

Just as he left the bathroom the timer on the oven went off. He spent the next twenty minutes perched on the kitchen counter –something his mother would have killed him for –and stirred up a bowl of ramen noodles, sauces, diced peppers and chicken strips. It was delicious and filled him right up. He couldn't deny that the food was good but he was unable to see how Haru was able to live on nothing but fish –mackerel no less –alone.

As soon as he was done he put the utensils into the sink to soak before hurrying into the upstairs bathroom. He shuddered vigorously as he stepped under the hot spray of the shower. Despite the temperature of the summer heat outside, he couldn't deny that he loved the feeling of hot water rushing over himself. Cleaning out the pool had made him break out in a dreadful sweat and his muscles were already aching. Maybe he'd see if anyone was about this afternoon once the pool was filled and Haru was swimming around to his heart's content?

Once he was dried off and changed into a pair of cut-offs and a baggy t-shirt. His hair was still a little damp but the sun would dry it within minutes. By the time he got downstairs his phone was vibrating with numerous missed messages and a missed call. He frowned as he saw that most of the messages were from Sousuke and one or two from Makoto. Rolling his eyes he quickly dialled the lesser of two evils.

" _Hello?_ " Makoto answered on the second ring.

"What's with the harassment, Makoto?" Rin joked as he padded outside to take a quick look at how the pool was filling up.

" _Ah you know what Sousuke is like. When he wants your attention he'll go through any lengths to get it_."

Rin blinked in confusion, "Wh-What does that mean?"

" _You'll see_ ," he chuckled.

Within seconds of the phone call ending, the doorbell rang out throughout the house. Rin jumped at the sound, his heart drumming heavily in his chest. He couldn't deny the apprehension he was feeling as he opened the door to the large shadow that was Sousuke, with a sheepish Makoto standing behind him. "I did warn you," the green-haired giant said as Sousuke strolled into the house without waiting for an invitation.

Rin glared after the both of them as he closed the front door, "What's all this then? You can't bear going a weekend without seeing me?" he asked.

"Not when it's the fifth weekend in a row," Sousuke stated, "What gives, Rin?"

"I've had plumbing problems," he stated dryly, "But they're sorted now and I was just filling the pool up."

Sousuke cast an eye over his shoulder and nodded at the truthfulness of his statement. "Okay so you're not busy then?"

"I … N-Not really, no. Why?"

"So that we don't have to kidnap you to go to the beach and fair today; Nagisa is super excited, Rin. You don't want us to invite that hyperactive ball of nonsense in here, do you?" Makoto chuckled.

Rin quickly shook his head, "No! No, that's fine. So what? I'll just grab my towel and my trunks and meet you outside then?"

"Sounds good," they both said before exchanging a look and quickly ducking back out the front door. Only when the door slammed shut did Rin breathe a little easier. His chest felt a little tight as he glanced down at his bare legs and trembled. That had been too close. He needed to make more of an effort to spend time with his friends so that they didn't ambush his house. What if they needed to use the bathroom next time? It didn't bear thinking about.

He hurried back upstairs and made his way around his room to grab at his beach towel, swim shorts and a bottle of sun cream before hurrying back down into the bathroom. Haru had, thankfully, stayed silent as he continued to pick and prod at the raw red flesh of his tail. "Stop that!" Rin snapped, feeling squeamish at the sight of it as he settled down on the toilet seat. "Now listen, I have to go out with my friends today and probably won't be back until later. Do you want to stay in here or try to swim?"

"… S-Swim?" Haru frowned.

"Yes, swim. In the pool in my back garden. Do you want to try?"

Haru looked up with wide eyes before nodding slowly, "Okay … T-Try."

"Okay, this is going to be a little awkward so help me as much as you can okay?" Rin asked as he bent awkwardly over the tub. Haru's skinny arms wound tightly around his neck and he had a momentary panic of being strangled by a giant squid. Snapping back to his senses, he slid his hand under the bottom of the tail and pushed all his weight into his knees to lift the creature out of the bathtub. Rin sighed with relief that the creature wasn't too heavy to carry. However, as soon as he peered down over the wrecked tail he saw just how much red flesh had settled at the bottom of the tub. It made his stomach squirm in discomfort. He tried not to look down at the bone pushing up through the tail and swallowed thickly as he made his way out of the bathroom and down the hallway.

As soon as they stepped out into the sunlight Haru stretched awkwardly in Rin's arms. He let out a weak cry and his tail –what was left of it –thrashed as the sun caught on the raw flesh. "Hey, hey! Hold on we're almost there!" Rin gasped out as it got difficult to hold onto the creature. By the time they got to the edge of the pool he couldn't hang on any longer and unceremoniously dropped Haru into the pool.

He landed in the water with a loud splash.

Rin gasped as he was released from the weight and felt a little miserable at how the creature simply sank to the bottom. He was just about to strip off and jump in after him when Haru moved under the water. It must have been awkward for him to swim with no fins, but he somehow managed to drift back up to the surface, only the top of his head showing as he stared up at Rin. His fingers crawled up over the pools edge and he lifted his face out completely, "Th-Thank you …"

Rin quirked a small smile, "You're welcome. Enjoy yourself in here today, okay? I'll try to be back before it gets dark."

Haru didn't reply, he merely sank back below the surface and started to do lopsided lengths along the bottom of the pool.

Rin watched him for a couple more minutes before the honking of a car horn interrupted his thoughts. He grimaced to himself. Now that Sousuke had passed his driving test and had gotten the car from his grandparents, he'd been showing off with it. Albeit it had only been a week but it still got on Rin's nerves. Without a backwards glance, he hurried on through his house, swiped up his bags and phone and hurried out the front door.

~0~

Merman in his outdoor pool aside, Rin had to say that he enjoyed himself that day when he went to the beach and fair on the pier with his group of friends. Even though Sousuke and he were on the opposing team as Makoto, Rei and Nagisa, there was absolutely no denying that they had fun together when they got down to the public beach.

They spent the majority of the day taking their time and enjoying playing volleyball on the beach before ducking into the ocean to cool down and laze about on their rubber rings.

"Should we maybe go and get something to eat?" Nagisa called out as they bobbed lazily on the waves. Rin rolled his eyes but didn't respond.

Makoto sat up a little higher on his inflatable bed. Sousuke was idly drifting in the water, sunglasses low on his nose and his chin and arms resting near Makoto's legs as they floated. "I guess we could do," he finally said, raking his damp hair out of his eyes, "It's probably long overdue for lunch anyways."

Rin cocked an eyebrow before sitting up in his rubber ring and stretched, "Okay let's go and get food before Nagisa starts fishing for his lunch. Literally."

The others laughed and together they started to gradually steer themselves back towards the shoreline. Rin was a little relieved to towel off and get out of the searing sunlight. He could feel his skin turning a little pink. Pulling a lightweight tee over his head he sighed as he rubbed in more sun-cream, stuck his sunglasses on his nose and hurried to join the others as they walked up along the beach towards the pier where the fair was being held.

Everything was brightly colour in long beams of pink, red, blue, yellow and lime green. It clashed so brilliantly that Rin could barely focus on just one stall. He felt like a kid in a candy store. Nagisa, of course, was the most excitable of them all, dragging poor Rei alongside him as he darted from stall to stall like a bunny on speed. Rin snickered as Makoto announced that he was going to find a table on the beach for them all. Sousuke called out after him for his food order and the 6'2" tall guy merely shrugged, saying he didn't mind. Rin was always impressed that two guys of suck similar heights with similar interests could be so different. Perhaps that's what attracted them to one another. After-all, Makoto was the only person Sousuke, at a terrifying 6'5", could look down on without him being a push-over in return.

As Makoto wondered off, Sousuke turned to cock an eyebrow down at Rin, "So are you going to tell me the real reason you've been cooped up every weekend?"

"I told you, Sousuke, the mains burst; I needed to get them fixed."

"For five weeks? It doesn't take a plumber that long, not even a bad one," the tall man mumbled grudgingly.

Rin shrugged, feeling his skin tingle for other reasons than the sunburn, "I just … I've had a lot of time to think since Gou and Mum went on this trip –"

"That's your problem; too much time to think. You don't need to think Rin, you need to just do. You won't have a lot of time for this sort of laziness if you go or the Olympic teams."

Rin grimaced. He hadn't thought about joining the Olympic team in weeks! He felt so ashamed, like he was cheating on his dreams with the strange reality that had flopped into his life. Eventually he sighed, "I know it's not an excuse."

"I wouldn't mind if it was something worthwhile like a girl or … you know, whatever," Sousuke shrugged, "but pipes? I don't buy it." Rin remained silent, not wanting to admit to Sousuke that his guesses were getting warmer by the second. Any warmer and Rin was sure he'd burst into flames. "Wait …" Sousuke stuck out an arm that caught Rin in his chest, bringing them both to a stop. "Is … Oh my God it IS a girl?" Sousuke's mouth turned into a smirk. "Well, in that case you have my blessing,"

Rin spluttered, "For what?!"

"For finally getting laid. God knows you've had a stick up your arse about something! You've needed some stress release and well … it's nice to see you've gotten some," he slapped Rin on the back, silencing the redhead just as they caught up with Rei and Nagisa and their tray-loads of food. Rei looked less than pleased.

"Are you sure you have enough there?" he asked them as they came to a stop in front of one another.

Nagisa beamed brightly, "Oh I think we have more than enough. Did Makoto go and find a table?"

"Yeah he's just gone down by the beach."

"Okay well don't be too long!" the little blonde laughed.

Sousuke huffed under his breath as they went away towards the nearest stall and grabbed a small tray or various foods, including sweet prawns for Rin. He'd been craving a fair bit of seafood recently. Once they'd paid and got out of the gaggle of dizzying girls in bikinis, they'd made their way to the table where everyone had gathered.

"Took you guys long enough," Makoto smiled as Sousuke casually eased into the seat beside him. Despite the two of them dating for a while, Rin still found it amusing that they weren't affectionate with one another in public. They didn't even hold hands with one another. Rin found it a little curious, not that he could picture Sousuke being soppy in any way, shape, or form. However, he knew that if he cared for someone as much as Sousuke cared for Makoto then he'd show it in  _some_  way. "Anyone fancy going to see a movie tonight?"

"I can't," Nagisa pouted, "My parents want me to revise for this test I have on Monday morning."

"I can't," Rei sighed softly as he adjusted his glasses, "but after this exam on Tuesday afternoon I'm free as a bird!"

"Aw that's too bad," Makoto frowned before smiling again, "Are you up for it Rin or will your swimming pool become a whirlpool?" he winked cheekily, which made Sousuke chuckle.

"Looks like it'll just be you and me, then," Sousuke smirked as he ruffled Makoto's hair, his finger's lingering at the back of the other man's neck just a little longer than necessary.

Rin smiled to himself as he continued to eat with his chopsticks, the prawns tasting as sweet as before. So they were slightly affectionate sometimes. And now they practically had a date –one of the first one's Rin had heard of them going on –and he was happy with them. He was also increasingly happy that he could get home by nightfall and check-in on Haru.

Pushing the thoughts of the strange creature flapping around in his swimming pool to the back of his mind, he threw himself into enjoying himself for the rest of the afternoon.

~0~

"Enjoy the movie you guys!" Rin called out from the driveway as Sousuke started to back out onto the main road. They'd dropped him off last once returning Rei and Nagisa off to their respective houses. Sousuke honked just before he drove away, Makoto's arm waving over the roof before they disappeared out of sight.

He shook his head as an evening breeze started to stir the trees. Goosepimples rippled up over his skin. He turned to walk up the path to his house, fished his keys out of his pocket and then opened the front door. The house beyond as dark and silent but then he shouldn't have been expecting anything else. The loneliness that swept over him made him shiver even more. He hadn't realised how much of a 'home' this place was until his mother and Gou had left.

With a sigh he left his belongings on the kitchen counter before hurrying up to the bathroom to apply some after-sun and await the inevitable flourish of the sunburn he knew he had. His skin felt itchy after he'd applied it, which only solidified his theory, before he sighed, changed out of his clothes –the hush of sand falling out everywhere made him grind his teeth –before ducking into the shower. Once out and dried off, he changed into some fresh, clean clothes from his room before lazily grabbing a glass of water and heading for the back door.

The sound of his glass shattering on the patio filled the night air.

His mouth hung open in horror as he was left standing over the edge of the pool, looking down into … Well; he didn't know what it was exactly. All he knew was that the water was now tinged red, with clumps of raw, red skin littering the bottom. There were no large shadows moving around down there. He circled the pool and after thorough checks, he determined that Haru wasn't sunken at the bottom. That didn't reassure him at all.

Where was Haru?

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" he cursed loudly, raking his hands through his hair and biting his lip until he tasted blood. What the hell was he going to do? Who should he call? Someone had stolen his merman! Despite his hysteria, he knew he was being ridiculous. There was no way he could report this. "What am I going to do?"

He scanned his eyes through the darkened scene of his back garden but there was nowhere that he could see the slumped figure of a merman. He suddenly felt very sick to his stomach. He wasn't able to contain himself as he doubled over and heaved up his lunch into the pool. He grimaced at the acidic taste. He was not looking forward to draining out the pool again.

He sniffed and barely suppressed a sob as the realisation dropped like a heavy weight onto his head; someone had somehow known about his secret and had broken in without leaving a trace. It didn't matter either way; it amounted to the same thing.

Haru was gone.


	7. VII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I have been absent for a while. Originally it was because of the NANOWRIMO challenge. And then because I got so swamped with work and didn't finish until about 10.30pm each night. So ... I was knackered. But I am ploughing on and updating for you lovely readers!

**VII**

Rin's heart was in his throat as he tore around his back garden in a desperate attempt to find Haru.

There was nothing behind the equipment shed, nothing wedged underneath the dense shrubbery his mother meticulously clipped before the summer heat had gotten too much, and there was definitely nothing at the bottom of the pool. It made him ache to think that someone had stolen his merman. What would they do to him? Would they strip his scales and flesh and stick it under a microscope? Would they drop chemicals onto him to see if his skin could regrow at a faster rate than humans? He knew he needed to calm down, but the irrational part of his brain was taking over fast.

Something clanked inside his house.

He froze, his body on fire as he turned, straining his ears to see if he could hear the culprit moving around. There was nothing but silence. Ironically enough, the imposter was probably doing the exact same thing, keeping quiet until they were sure the coast was clear.

Clenching his fingers into fists, Rin tightened his jaw and stormed towards his house. He wasn't having any of this. He was not about to risk Haru's safety for the whim of some social climbing scientist. With blood pounding in his temples, he pried the glass door to one side and slid inside.

The door closed softly behind him. The house was silent as he turned to view the semi-illuminated lower level of it, his eyes scanning every shadowed corner for any sign of movement. There was none. Drawing in a slow breath, Rin made his way over to the kitchen and quietly slide the top drawer open, pulling out one of the long shearing knives his mother kept locked away. A soft hiss of steel caught his ears, magnified in the silence, as he slid the knife free. He wasn't going to be unarmed in such a futile situation. If he was going down, he was going to go down fighting and hopefully do some damage to the intruder along the way.

His bare feet were silent along the wooden floorboards.

As he moved along down the hallway, he strained his ears and watching left and right for someone to spring out and attack him. He kept close to the wall to prevent any sneak attacks from behind him. His stomach was twisted into tight knots as he grabbed onto the bannister. Just as he was about to ascend the stairs, something clanked to the floor in the downstairs bathroom. Every muscle turned to stone. Now it was inevitable; the curtain of hope had vanished into thin air. It was no longer a nightmare but a cold, hard reality he needed to face.

A shuffling sound caught his attention. It made his mind spin as his breathing grew harder in his ears.

He didn't want to go toward the bathroom; he knew it wouldn't be safe. Being cornered in such a secluded part of the house with an unknown assailant was not going to end well for him. Flexing his fingers and adjusting his grip around the knife, he raised it a little higher and braced himself for defence.

Another clang made him jump from the other side of the bathroom door.

Drawing in a deep breath, he reached out for the doorknob. "ALRIGHT YOU!" he called out, his voice feeling tight in his throat, "I'VE CALLED THE POLICE AND I'M ARMED! I'M GOING TO OPEN THE DOOR NOW!"

His hand felt clumsy as he opened the door and forced it open.

The bathroom was a mess that was Rin's first thought as he looked inside the weakly lit room; the towel had been ripped from the metal rail, the dust bin and toilet brush were littering the floor and the soap dish and shampoos had slid down into the bath. Rin's breath caught in his throat as he squeezed the knife handle and drank in the pathetic sight of, what was once, his strange creature naked and gleaming on the tiled floor, burrowed away in the small alcove under the sink.

"Haru?" Rin asked with a frown, his arm quaking from where the blood has rushed out of his muscles. The creature quivered but he didn't look up at him. Chewing down on his lip, Rin peered a little closer, "Haru is that you?"

A choked sound came from the trembling creature, its mop of inky blue hair dripping down over his quaking arms and jittering ... were those legs? Fully formed, ice-white legs?

Placing the knife on the side, Rin dropped down to his knees, wincing at the cold tiled floor, he leaned over reached out with nervous fingers to touch the cold flesh of Haru's shin. Why was he so cold? Rin let his eyes run down the legs; they were stark white, cold and damp from where Haru had been in the water. Pressing his palm around Haru's knee, he gave a soft squeeze and swallowed thickly, his heart racing.

Haru flinched but didn't shy away from Rin's touch. Drawing in a deep breath, Rin adjusted his position so that he was sitting cross-legged on the floor. "Are you hurt?" he asked as he placed both hands on Haru's knees. There was the smallest shake of the boys' head. "Are you sure? You made a lot of noise earlier."

Haru made a weak scoffing noise.

Rin sighed and raked a hand through his hair, his eyes dropping down to Haru's legs; they looked slimy and had a green-greyish tinge to them. They looked sickly under the golden light. Running his fingers down over Haru's knee, Rin grimaced as he pulled back, a long string of goo dangling at the end of his hand. It made his stomach heave. He wiped his hand clean on his jeans before turning to the bath tub. He needed to get Haru cleaned up; the sight of his long, skinny legs bent awkwardly under the sink was disconcerting, not to mention how they actually looked. The off-white flesh looked bloodless and cold, the webbing between the toes was still a sickly grey-green colour just like his tail fins had been. The etchings of scaling skin were still gleaming like angry cracks beneath the surface but other than that, the legs were most definitely human. Not to mention, the rough web-like protrusions sticking out the back of his ankles. Besides, he needed something to distract himself from the rattling of the boys' breath and the thick webbing between both his fingers and toes.

As soon as the tub was filled enough, Rin spread out a couple of towels on the tiled floor so that neither of them would slip, before he crouched down in front of the sink so that he could ease Haru out of his hiding place. It was awkward getting the boy into the tub; his knees had kept knocking together and his head and lulled heavily on Rin's shoulder, but soon enough the naked, slimy boy was submerged in the warm water.

Rin was perplexed as he ran his eyes up and down the length of those submerged legs. They were so white, so fresh so … out of nowhere. "What … er … How do you have legs?" he finally asked, his voice catching in his throat.

Haru simply stared at him, the pain ebbing out of his tight features as his dark blue eyes dotted down to the appendage in question. He cocked his head back against the tub and let a soft noise escape his throat. "Water …" he rasped out, his voice crackling.

"Do you want something to drink?" Rin gushed, adrenaline surging through him to hurry into the kitchen for a glass.

Haru shook his head and let his hand flick water over the tub, "No … Water is … Wrong."

Rin furrowed in brow in confusion, "What do you mean? You mean it's not salt water? Would adding table salt work?"

Haru rocked his head back and forth, "Wrong … Chemical …"

"Hey try not to talk," Rin stated as he gently closed Haru's hung-open mouth. They would figure it out later when he had adjusted to this transition. For now, he needed to get the rest of the goo scrubbed off of him and as much as Rin didn't want to do it, Haru looked on the verge of falling over the precipice and into sleep.

Using a flannel and a bar of soap Rin took his time in scrubbing as much of Haru as possible, the filmy goo clumping at the bottom of the bath, but he didn't care. The warm water made Haru's skin blush a healthier shade of pale-pink and soon enough, he decided that Haru was ready to get dressed and settled into his sister's bedroom for the night. In the morning he would figure out what would happen next, but for now he was only focusing on the following few hours. He pulled the plug out of the tub and as the water started gurgling down the drain, Rin wandered upstairs to his bedroom and rummaged around in his chest-of-drawers for a pair of spare bottoms and a jumper. Despite the balmy night air, he had no doubt in his mind that Haru would be quite cold.

He knew that Haru was used to cold temperature way below the surface of the sea, but there were also active underwater volcanoes that would make the surrounding area quite warm, so he figured warmer clothing would be best.

Dressing Haru was an ordeal in itself; he was floppy and awkward as Rin helped him clumsily step out of the bathtub and sitting down on the toilet seat. Rin was a little perturbed that Haru was still naked, but the awkwardness abated as soon as Rin eased the tracksuit bottoms up and over the pale boys' narrow hips. It had been a trial in getting Haru up on his brand new feet and balancing against Rin; his arms hanging limply around Rin's strong, square shoulders. He had made small noises but his voice was still breaking a little, so Rin had simply hushed him before letting him sit down on the toilet again and helped thread his arms and head through the appropriate holes of his hoodie.

"Are you hungry?" Rin asked, once again crouching down on the bathroom floor, his face pulled into a frown as he peered at Haru through his thick messy hair. When he saw the creature shakes his head a little, he finally sighed softly before standing up, "Alright then, come on; I need to get you up and into bed. You need a lot of rest if you're going to be able to talk to me properly about all of this. I just … I can't understand it." He couldn't help but shrug as Haru shifted his head back to peer up at Rin, the yellow hoodie making him look fairly sickly.

His dark eyes made something stir inside Rin and it made him feel a little uncomfortable.

"Do you want to go to sleep?" he asked.

Haru blinked slowly, the large irises gleaming fifty shades of blue in the bright bathroom light. "Okay …" he finally croaked before holding his hands out for Rin to take. Together they pulled and pushed until Haru was standing upright, most of his weight leaning back against Rin's chest.

"Do you think you'll be able to make it up the stairs?" Rin asked as they managed to shuffle their way down the narrow hallway and stopped at the bottom of the staircase. He watched as Haru craned his neck up a little to stare at the stairs in question.

"N-No …"

"Okay," the redhead bit down on his lip and frowned as he tried to think of a way to get Haru up to the landing. Then an idea clicked in his head; he could simply do it the way he and his dad used to carry Gou up to bed when she'd fallen asleep on the sofa. "Hold onto the bannister as tight as you can," he instructed as he unwound Haru's arms from his neck and looped them around the end of the bannister. He watched Haru's muscles strain as he struggled to hold all of his weight up on his shaking legs.

Rin crouched down beside the creature, trying his best not to stare at the long, webbed toes, before easing one of the quaking legs around his other side. He looped both arms around his neck, the weight of Haru resting on his back. "Okay, I'm going to lift you up onto my back alright?" he warned over his shoulder. He wasn't even sure if the boy was still awake. Hooking both of Haru's thighs under his arms, he lifted up a little more and hoisted the lithe creature completely onto his back.

Haru have a small started yelp and dug his nails in through Rin's shirt, but made no other moves to run off.

Adjusting to the new weight, Rin tightened his grip on Haru's legs and slowly started to climb the stairs, desperately wishing he could hold onto the bannister for support. Each time Haru shifted, he felt the bones in his narrow muscles japing through his thin, summer clothes, but Rin carried on climbing until he reached the soft, plush carpet on the landing. Once there, he made a U-turn and headed straight for his sister's room which was adjacent to his own at the end of the hallway.

Kicking open the door he was assaulted with the smell of an unused room; it was a soft, forgotten smell and made his chest ache with nostalgia for the company of his little sister and the jokes they used to share. With a soft grunt, he managed to shift Haru off his back and onto the single bed. Haru barely made a sound as he lie there, stiff as a board and his eyes wide and glassy as Rin shook the cover out from underneath him and draped it over the creature's body.

"There you go," he smiled gently as he adjusted the blanket over Haru's narrow feet. "Is that alright for you?"

Haru stared owlishly at his surroundings; his chest heaved before he pressed his thin lips together and nodding stiffly.

Rin gave a small, tired smile, "I'm right next door if you need me okay? Just yell or knock on the wall or something and I'll come in."

Haru didn't respond. He merely shifted under the blankets until it was covering his mouth. Rin resisted the urge to stroke Haru's damp hair out of his eyes and, instead, turned and walked out of his sister's room. He pulled the door to, letting it click shut, before sighing heavily and cracking the kinks out of his joints.

Padding over into his own room he turned the small bedside light on and drew the blinds down over his window. It was already quite late in the evening and his skin was a little tight from the excessive exposure to the sun. He could still smell sea water and hot sand. The sound of said sand falling out of every crack and crevice made his skin crawl. He would have to sort out his house and give it a once-over with the hoover. The idea was unappealing but he reasoned that it would give him more of a chance to think of what to do with Haru now that he had no tail.

_He had no tail._

The thought was still alien to him and made his full belly flip uncomfortably. How was the boy on the other side of the wall now an actual boy instead of a strange creature that was flopping about in his bathtub? It was too surreal for him to comprehend as he sank down onto the end of his bed and dropped his head into his hands. His heart drummed steadily in his chest as he flexed his shoulder muscles and stretched the kinks out of his legs. It had been a long day. If he was going to carry-on and get out of bed the following morning, then he needed to get some sleep.

Rubbing his hand down his face he stripped down and changed into a new pair of underwear before climbing into his bed and tossing the covers over himself. The sheets were cool to the touch ad made him shiver pleasurably. After such a long day in the unbearable heat and the panic he'd felt upon returning home, it was nice to just take a moment and relax completely.

His mind was still racing inside his head as he turned the light off and plunged the room into darkness.

In the room next door he could here Haru tossing and turning back and forth in his sisters' bed. He must be incredibly uncomfortable with his newly formed legs and lying in fabric that clearly irritating his skin. Maybe Rin should get an airbed? Perhaps the rubber would feel better on his new, raw skin than the cotton sheets? Rin turned over on his side and curled an arm under his head; he wanted to be able to do something for Haru but there didn't seem to be anything within his power to help. Not yet at least; everything was too up in the air at such a late hour to accomplish anything.

Even if he wanted to go and blow up his own inflatable lino, it would take far too long to do it at such a late hour and it wouldn't help either one of them. Rin would end up waking up too late to do anything in the day, and Haru would get some sleep and that would be it on the matter.

Whatever needed doing was simply going to have to wait until morning.


	8. VIII

** VIII **

Bright and early the following morning Rin was thrown from his dream by a loud crash.

He was out of his bed and sliding into the next room before his brain even properly realised that it wasn’t a dream. He winded himself on the doorframe as he pushed into Gou’s room. The first thought he was able to register was that the bed was empty and that he landed face down onto it after tripping over Haru’s splayed legs.

“Shit!” he cursed through the darkness, fumbling about blindly for the bedside lamp. Flicking the switch, he brought light into the long room. Swivelling round on his haunches, Rin squinted down at the floor, “Haru? What’re you doing? What’s wrong?” Crawling over on his hands and knees, he turned Haru’s shoulder so that he could look down onto the creature’s face, “What were you trying to do?”

Haru’s mouth was open and a soft rasping sound filled the quiet air between them. The sound made Rin shudder in the pre-dawn light as Haru struggled to find the ability to speak. “I … W-Water,” he finally rasped.

Rin blinked sluggishly, the blanket of sleep still making his head feel woolly. “Do you need something to drink?” he finally asked, stifling a yawn. Haru looked up at him with wide, dark eyes before nodding awkwardly. “Okay, let’s get you back in the bed first then I’ll get you something to drink,” with that Rin reached down and grasped Haru’s arm. Now that he knew what to expect, heaving Haru back up onto the bed wasn’t too troublesome. As soon as he was settled back on the bed, propped up on Gou’s thin pillows and his legs stretched out in front of him, Rin sighed with relief before straightening up and turning back towards the door.

His legs felt heavy as he dragged himself down to the kitchen. As the water ran cold in the sink he rubbed a hand down his face and yawned a little wildly. He felt so tired; his skull felt fuzzy and like his brain was on fire.

Grasping the glass in both hands he trailed back up to the bedroom and closed the door behind him.

Haru was thankfully still perched in the same place, his hair falling down in front of his eyes as he sat, hunched over with his arms resting on his knees. He was so thin and pale he almost glowed in the dim light. Rin settled down on the edge of the bed and held out the glass of water for Haru to sip. He didn’t trust the creature to hold a full glass on his own, let alone in his little sister’s bed.

Haru gulped the water down before shuddering and wriggling down underneath the warmth of the thin blankets. Rin set the glass up on the side but wasn’t ready to leave Haru, not just yet. “Once you’re strong enough,” he hedged his voice thick with sleep, “I want you to come and meet my friends. I can’t keep hiding away in this house for you. As nice as it is being out of the heat, I can’t abandon my friends or my work at school.”

Haru’s eyes looked up at him before dropping back down to the strawberry printed duvet cover.

“I know it’s frightening for you,” Rin murmured tiredly, “but at the same time you need to do this. Experience summer with me and see how it goes. One day at a time, alright?”

“Summer … Too long,” Haru rasped.

“You mean you … need to go back to –wherever you came from –by the end of the Summer?”

Haru shrugged his shoulders, “Too long … not swimming … hurts …”

Rin frowned. That didn’t make any sense. “Do you mean you hurt because you haven’t been swimming a lot lately or that it’ll hurt more the longer you stay … human?”

“Both … Want to swim …” Haru peered up through his fringe, licking his pale lips. Rin swallowed thickly. The eerie look of Haru in the darkness made his skin crawl a little; his eyes were too wide and dark for his narrow face, his limbs too skinny and the scabbed over gills on his neck and webbed fingers and toes … it was almost all too much.

Rin tilted his head to the side and sighed softly, “Okay don’t worry. Tomorrow –or today –we can go out into the pool and build up your muscle strength okay?”

Haru gave a short nod, “Okay … And f-friends?”

“My friends?” Rin asked, “Well we can have them meet you here first, so it’s a safe place? Or you can just come by practice one day when you’re stronger? Either way I can work with it. I’ll say you’re my cousin or something.” Rubbing at his eyes, Rin glanced at the small clock on the bedside table. “Okay, it’s late –or early. Either way I need to be up in five hours so I’m going to go and get some sleep. You going to be okay?”

Haru gave a stiff little nod. Rin decided he needed to be satisfied with that for now. With a strained smile, he stood up and, on shaking legs, made his way back down the hall to his own room.

Later that morning, Rin stared out over his kitchen with a disgruntled expression; damp towels and short bowls of water created a trail from the bottom of the staircase and into the kitchen, and then a smaller trail leading off towards the bathroom. It was a real mess and was going to take even longer to clear up, especially if Haru tripped on anything. At present, said creature was settled at the table with his feet submerged in about an inch of water in what was originally the washing-up bowl from the kitchen sink. For his part Rin was standing at the kitchen counter and was dissecting a small mackerel for Haru for his breakfast. The creature simply refused to eat anything else just yet, which meant Rin had to take at least a shower a day to rid himself of the fish stink. Rin had already wolfed down a bowl of cereal for himself, not wanting to waste any time in watching as Haru fumbled from bowl to bowl, his dainty narrow feet slipping awkwardly as he moved from room to room.

“I called up a friend of my mums this morning before you came down,” he started softly his voice still thick from sleep, “He’s cleaned out the pool for us. Thankfully he didn’t ask too many questions about the mess at the bottom of it. So that means that we can go in the pool and spend the day building your muscles up.”

Haru glanced up at him, the greenish-grey hue of his skin making Rin quiver. “Waste … time …” he grumbled around a mouthful of fish.

Rin frowned, “That’s not a waste of time. What else would I do today?”

“Friends … Work … School …”

Rin almost smirked at those words. They were the exact ones he said earlier that morning, in that exact order. He couldn’t help but shake his head as he took a long sip from his tea. “It’s up to you, but the pool is there and ready if you change your mind. If not I may just go out for the afternoon. Let me know when I come back from my shower.”

Haru didn’t say anything as Rin drained the last of his tea and set it down in the sink. On his way out towards the main hall, he stopped in the doorway and turned to look at Haru, or more importantly the backs of his legs just visible from underneath the chair. Despite the fins and scales having dropped away, there was a lengthy puckered pink scar running up his shin. Rin wanted to look at them more closely but he didn’t want to if it might offend the creature. Truly, washing out the fleshy mess from the bathtub had been a challenge enough.

Once he was washed, dressed and spitting minty foam out into the sink, Rin felt a lot more awake and a good thing too, as Sousuke would not stop ringing his mobile. In the end he’d asked and, whilst scrubbing his teeth, had listened to his friend go on and chatter to him about arranging a barbeque for that weekend. Rin had no objections, but did suggest that they could use his house seeing as his family were away. Sousuke had agreed and it was arranged for that weekend. That left Rin four days to teach Haru how to walk with confidence. It was a challenge indeed.

As for the rest of his afternoon, Rin wasn’t busy. Makoto had invited himself and Sousuke over for dinner, but he was prepared for that. He was simply going to wrap one of Haru’s legs in bandages and help him to hobble from place to place, the rehearsed story of a pulled tendon already forming in his mind.

Fully-dressed, Rin went back into the kitchen where Haru was sitting upright in the chair, his plate and glass empty. Taking them to rinse out in the sink, Rin made his way back around the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. “I have two of my friends coming over for dinner tonight. They should be round for about 7pm. Do you think you’ll be alright?”

Haru shrugged his hunched shoulders and dropped his gaze back down to the table.

Rin pulled out the chair opposite and leaned over the table, careful not to touch Haru’s too-cool skin, “I promise they won’t bother you. If you’d rather stay in my sister’s room then that’s okay too.”

Haru shook his head, “Meet … Friends …”

Rin frowned, “Are you sure?”

Haru nodded before he raised his eyes to Rin. The taller boy tried not to feel his heart stutter in his chest. Those eyes were so deep he was sure he was going to trip and drown in them.  Clearing his throat he rubbed the back of his neck and straightened up in his chair, “Right well then, let’s get you over to the pool and see if you feel better.”

Haru didn’t do anything he simply let Rin clap him on the shoulder. He watched over his shoulder as the red-haired boy went back and forth organizing things before he unlocked the door that led out into the garden.

An hour later it was like Rin was accompanied by a totally different person. Haru seemed to transform as soon as he was in the clean water of the pool; he seemed to move a lot faster, even if his legs left him feeling a little clumsy. Rin was surprised at just how fast the creature was; if they were to race properly in a regulation pool, he was sure that Haru was going to come close to beating him. After a solid hour of streaking back and forth, Rin had to take a break to catch his breath, not that he would tell anyone that someone –or something –could swim faster than him. Not that it mattered; Haru was raised in water, lived and breathed the stuff, it was only natural for him to be a skilled swimmer.

Leaning back with his arms raised on the sides, Rin tilted his head back and let the warm sun dry the water from his face. He adored the light burn he felt in his thighs. He hadn’t fought so hard to keep up in a long time, not even with Sousuke. He had sorely missed the challenge. The water lapped up his neck as Haru glided back towards the edge of the swimming pool, his wet legs brushing briefly against Rin’s. Cracking open an eye, Rin tilted his head to the side so he could see the creature. “Feeling any better?” he asked as Haru slid above the surface of the water, the beads running down his narrow nose and dripping off.

Haru didn’t reply; his eyes flicked to Rin’s face before dropping down to the tiled edge of the pool.

Rin heaved himself out a little so he could grab his phone and check the time. It was almost 3PM. His fingers were pruning so much that the pads of his fingers were caving in. Slipping back into the water he grabbed Haru’s arm just as the boy was about to dive back under the water. “I’m just going to get out for a while. Do you want me to get you anything?”

“No,” Haru said before sliding, like oil, out of Rin’s grasp and disappearing beneath the water.

Rin watched the dark mass of hair descend to the bottom of the pool and sighed. He climbed out and dried himself off as a swift breeze tousled his hair. As soon as he was dry, he pulled a shirt on to prevent any further exposure to the sun before briskly walking into the kitchen. He made himself something to eat, downed a pint of water and then collapsed onto the sofa, his muscles relaxing as he sank into the cushions. Grapping the remote he idly flicked through the TV channels, looking for something to hold his interest. Haru seemed content to do laps in the pool, seemingly getting faster and faster as he got used to swimming with two legs instead of a tail.

All too soon the sound of the water splashing around managed to coax Rin back outside. He could watch TV anytime, but if Haru was right and he only had the summer to witness something so extraordinary, then he wanted to watch for as long as he was able.

Pulling one of the deck chairs over to the edge of the pool, Rin settled down with a cap on his head and a bottle of water in his lap. Haru was still swimming lengths but he seemed to have calmed down a little –then again Rin had no idea what the creature’s usual swimming speed was. Sipping his water, Rin watched the pale muscles working through the water; the sheer power in those lithe limbs amazed him. The boy could excel at races if he were human.

An idea clicked in his head.

Toeing off his trainer, Rin kicked it into the water grateful that he’d pulled on his old pair for the day. The rubber sank below the surface before being tossed up onto the side. The top half of Haru’s face came into view, his blank expression making Rin want to flick him just to get a reaction.

“Hey Haru, what do you think about staying human for the rest of the summer?” he asked.

Haru didn’t do anything other than blink up at Rin. Somehow his eyes said everything in one blink; ‘don’t be stupid’, ‘I can’t do that!’ and ‘you’re an idiot’. Above all else, Rin suddenly felt like he was trying to persuade an oyster to taste good even though he knew it wouldn’t.

“…Why?” Haru finally asked, his chin propped up and resting on the edge of the pool.

“Well some friends have this swimming team and are short one player. If you can manage to walk within a week or two, it would really help them. They’d even be able to go to the championships with my team,” he felt foolish explaining the dynamics of racing to a fish.

Haru hummed to himself before peeling away from the edge and slipping back under the water. Rin sighed; he knew he’d been asking too much of the creature but he was still left feeling disappointed. Reclining back in his hair, the redhead watched the creature swim back and forth, even simply gliding on his back, his skin shimmering in the sunlight, and his legs bent under the lapping water.

By the time the sun was starting to sink like a fat red ball in the sky, Rin finally managed to coax Haru to climb out of the pool. It had been a little awkward as he’d had to stoop down and all but drag the creature out and park his rear end on the side of the pool, but once that was done and Rin had handed the creature his towel, he needed to set down the plan for the evening before his friends arrived.

“So I know you can’t really say much at the moment, but as far as anyone else knows you’re my cousin, right?” Rin reiterated for the third time as they let their legs drift along in the water.

Haru nodded, “Cousin. Cousin Haru.”

“Exactly,” Rin sighed and leaned back on his arms, “And you’ve hurt your leg. So you’re staying with me for the summer as you recover.”

Haru looked at him out of the corner of his dark blue eyes, “… Easy.”

Rin smiled and shook his head, “If you say so. Now come on, let’s get you inside and ready. You can’t sit in front of my friends in just a pair of wet trunks.”

Standing up and grasping Haru’s arms, Rin managed to get the blue-haired boy on his wobbly legs with an arm secured around his neck, and his own arm wrapped around Haru’s waist. He made sure to keep Haru fastened to his side as they made their way across the cool grass, before slipping over the doorjamb and into the house. Rin helped him up to his bedroom where he sat Haru down on his desk chair before turning back to his chest-of-drawers and rummaging around for some smaller clothes.

Haru sat there calmly, his hands in his lap and his legs bent back under the chair as he watched with wide, dark eyes as Rin drew out a thin shirt and a pair of long chino’s. He handed them to Haru before settling back on his bed, “Do you think you can get those on?”

Haru eyed the clothes before shrugging and started to claw the shirt on over his head. Rin had to suppress a smile; it was like watching a puppy try and shake a towel off its head. He diverted his gaze as Haru wriggled out of the sodden trunks to change into the chinos.

“… Rin,” Haru’s voice carried across the room.

Rin turned to look over at the fully dressed creature, illuminated by the dying light, and felt his chest tighten. “Do you want some socks?” he finally asked his voice a little higher than normal. Haru nodded and held his foot out. Rin scowled and bit back the retort about feeling like Cinderella and Prince Charming as he crouched own and slipped the socks onto Haru’s scaly, webbed feet. “There, now let’s get you downstairs. I want to know what to order for you before my friends come over.”

Haru frowned a little, “Why?”

“Because I don’t want to take forever when they do come over to finally decide that you want prawn-fried rice, got it?”

Haru rolled his eyes but Rin was almost certain he saw those thin, pale lips quirk into a brief smile.

~0~

“KNOCK! KNOCK!” Makoto called through the front door. Rin rolled his eyes as he made his way over to the front door and welcomed his two friends into his home. Their arms were filled with some take-away boxes.

Rin frowned, “what’s all this? I thought we were ordering food once you got here.”

“We are,” Sousuke said as he closed the front door, “But Makoto was too hungry to wait. I think he’s been spending too much time around Nagisa.”

Rin laughed as he helped Makoto unload the food onto the kitchen counter, “Well we’re going to need to order some food anyway. I have a … er … house-guest.”

His two friends frowned as they followed Rin through into the open-planned kitchen and living room and stopped short when they saw the dark-haired boy perched on the edge of the sofa, his blank expression drilling into them as soon as he caught sight of them. Haru made no indication to acknowledge them other than with a look. He didn’t want to move. The atmosphere in the room grew thick and somewhat awkward as the three swimmers stood there near the kitchen with their arms laden with bags.

“So who’s your friend?” Makoto asked, breaking the silence and turning his attention back to Rin.

Rin glanced over at Haru settled on the sofa before feeling the heat burning up his neck, “This is Haru. He’s a distant cousin of mine. He’s staying with me for the summer whilst he rests his leg. He had an accident.”

“What kind of accident?” Sousuke asked, giving Haru a once over with a sceptical gaze.

“It was a biking accident,” Rin shrugged as he got out plates and glasses for the four of them.

“Ah,” Makoto nodded, seeing as he knew all about the bumps and scrapes acquired from riding a bike. His two younger siblings were proof of that. They practically wrote the book on how to fall off a bike. “So Haru where are you from? Haven’t seen you around these parts,” he called out over his shoulder.

Haru didn’t reply. The silence alone was enough to draw three pairs of eyes to him. Rin could feel his body heat-up as his fragile web of lies hung in the balance. Haru shrugged. “Nagasaki,” he finally stated.

“And how long do you plan on staying with Rin for?” Makoto asked as Sousuke grabbed the landline and punched in a number for a local take-away. Rin stood close to his friend but kept one ear strained for Haru’s voice.

“All summer,” Haru mumbled.

Makoto nodded before turning back to look at Rin. “He doesn’t say much does he?” he stated with a breezy smile. Rin had always envied the taller man’s easy-going nature. Everything came too easily to him. Was there a secret to living life that he knew and kept from everyone else? Rin had no idea, but he would never stop feeling envious.

Rin gave a grin and shrugged, “He’s never been much of a talker. He’s the strong silent type, is Haru.”

“Haru … is that short for Haruka?” Sousuke asked as he waited, the phone pressed to his ear.

Rin swallowed thickly, “Er … yes.”

“Bit of a girly name, isn’t it?”

He shot Sousuke a dark look before snickering, “Please, like our little group can actually complain about that.”

“He had a point Sousuke,” Makoto grinned as he leaned on his clasped hands, “Nagisa is the epitome of girly names right now, and he’s not complaining.”

Sousuke rolled his eyes before finally getting through on the landline. “Rin,” he hissed, “What do you and Haru want?” Rin shifted over the small post-it he’d written ‘PRAWN-FRIED RICE’ and ‘SESAME SEED EGG ROLLS AND CHOW MEIN WITH ROAST DUCK’. Sousuke rolled his eyes but recited the request orders and thanked the lady on the other end once everything was ordered for a home delivery. “Right,” he put the phone down and turned towards the others, “Who fancies watching a movie?”

The rest of the evening passed by without any unusual events; it didn’t take long for the others to understand that Haru wasn’t a big talker. Rin was sort of thankful for that, especially as the food itself presented them with a worthy distraction as well as the debate over what was good to watch. Makoto, of course, being the tie-breaker. When they finally left for the evening, bellies full and their minds numbed from the conversation and the tranquil evening. After they pulled out of the drive way and Rin closed the door to the rumbling of the engine, before shuffling back into the living room.

He settled down on the edge of the doorframe and looking over at Haru where he was lying down on the sofa, his legs looking a little stiff from the long day of over-bearing exercise. Rin crossed the room and settled down on the sofa. Leaning a little closer than necessary he said, “Thank you for tonight. I know I pushed you a lot and you needed to do a lot, with the exercise and all. I didn’t mean to push you to do so much in one day.”

Haru hummed low in his throat, “That’s … Okay. Some people … need pushing.”

Rin cast a look over at the creature nestled beside him, “I do appreciate it though. Thank you.”

“You’re … You’re welcome.”

“Do you want me to help you up to bed?” Rin asked after a few moments of just watching the smaller boy beside him.

Haru nodded, “Yes please … Tired … Sleep.”

Rin nodded and stood up from the sofa, his knees creaking a little as he stretched himself out and worked the knots out of his joints. Haru was either becoming lighter and easier to lift, or Rin was just getting used to carrying his weight. Carrying the creature on his back, he managed to climb the stairs as quickly as his legs would carry him, before moving into Gou’s bedroom. As soon as he made a move to go towards the bedroom, Haru’s grip around his neck tightened until he stopped mid-step.

“What? What’s wrong?” he asked as Haru loosened his hold.

“Don’t … Sleep alone,” Haru breathed his voice a little husky as he nuzzled into Rin’s neck.

“Well you’re going to have to. I don’t have any other beds.” It was a bald-faced lie but there was no way he could let Haru sleep in his parents’ bed. That just would not do. Ignoring Haru’s hold on his neck, Rin made his way into Gou’s bedroom and, once he made sure Haru had everything he needed, he said ‘goodnight’ and made his way to his own room to sleep.

As he undressed and slid under the covers, he sighed with relief. The evening had gone well, with Haru meeting the calmer of his small circle of friends. The only question was, would he be able to get Haru strong enough to compete, and even if he could, would the others thing it was a good idea?

With a sigh, he rolled over onto his side and went to sleep.


	9. IX

**IX**

Three days later the problem started.

Rin didn't exactly realise anything was amiss until he was trying to turn over onto his back and stretch out like he did every morning, when something stopped him. Frowning he cracked an eye open and peered over his shoulder. In the bleak early morning light his heart leapt into his throat and almost choked him. He spluttered as he fumbled to the far edge of his bed before realisation dawned on him.

The pale white skin _was_ familiar to him. The scabbed over gills were raw in the light. The long oily black lashes fanned long shadows over the creature's cheeks. The only thing that was completely unnatural about the entire thing was that, for some reason, Haru was _in his_ bed! How had he gotten there? Just a few days ago he could barely make it between one room and the next without stepping in bowls of water. Now all of a sudden he had managed to make it all the way down the hall to Rin's bedroom and climb into bed with him.

Growing agitated, Rin reached and shook Haru's shoulder, not caring to be gentle. This was a complete invasion of his privacy for goodness sake! They were practically attached at the hip every minute of the day, except for bathroom breaks, so what was the deal?

"Hey!" he snapped as he prodded Haru's shoulder roughly. The creature frowned a little, shifted in his sleep, but didn't wake up. "Haru! Wake up, this isn't funny!" he snapped.

Haru finally sighed and lazily peeled an eyelid open, the large dark iris glaring right back at him over the pillows. "Sleeping ..." he grumbled out before clamping his eyes shut again. Rin ground his teeth together.

"Get out of my room! This is my bed!" he snapped, sitting bolt upright and yanking the blanket away from Haru. His dark blue hair became an inky mess and his body recoiled into a ball. "Out!" he shouted again, raising his voice as he tried to roll the dead-weight creature over the edge. For his part, when he didn't want to move, Haru could become virtually unmovable. "God you sodding fucking fish!" Rin sneered as he kicked the covers back and dragged himself out of bed.

Once upright, he grabbed Haru's skinny ankles and pulled him clean off the bed. He landed with a heavy thump on the bedroom floor before sitting up awkwardly and glaring up at Rin through gritty eyes.

"Don't give me that look, fish boy! What the hell are you playing at? You can't just crawl into someone else's bed when they're asleep!" he raged as he threw his arms about, his anger flaring out of him in vigorous bursts.

Haru heaved a sigh and creaked his knee joints before drawing them up to his chest. His inky blue hair dripped down in front of his eyes as he glared up at the red-haired man in front of him. "... Why?" he croaked.

Rin blinked in shock. "I ... well ... Cause it's just weird! What would you think if a guy crawled into your bed? You'd freak!"

Haru sighed and closed his eyes. "Asked you ... to stay ..."

Rin stopped mid-rant. The air was knocked out of his lungs and the words evapourated from his brain. He blinked in surprise down at the creature lying sprawled on the floorboards of his bedroom, dressed in a pair of Rin's tracksuit bottoms and a baggy shirt that hung off his narrow frame in a very attractive way. Wait ... what? Rin clenched his jaw and felt a tremor run down his spine. He did _not_ just think that! Haru was not attractive, not even in an effeminate way ... why on earth did he think that?

"J-Just get out of my room! Get _OUT_!" he yelled, an ugly flush staining his skin.

Instead of hurrying out like a frightening mouse at the loud noise, Haru tightened his jaw before slowly peeling himself off the floor and standing upright. Even on his own two feet he barely reached up to Rin's nose. He glared up at Rin and turned on his heel before hobbling as dignified as physically possible out to the hallway. He closed the door behind him. The sound was louder than he expected as the door slammed into place.

Rin let out a heavy sigh as he quickly dressed himself and then made his way downstairs to work up something to eat. He didn't care about making Haru anything; if the fishy little git wanted something to eat, he could make something himself.

Half-way through making breakfast for himself, Rin felt his anger drain away from him. He couldn't be mad at Haru, not really. The poor creature was probably used to curling up in a clam-shell or a rock-pool with a few of his family members packed together. A bed was probably too lonely for him. Not to mention he was with Rin throughout the entire day anyway. He guessed it was only natural for Haru to not want the separation to extend to when he slept. A far too vulnerable state for a fish out of water.

Literally.

So no, Rin couldn't find it in his heart to carry on being mad at Haru. Not over something so juvenile. Besides, Gou used to climb into his bed all the time when there was a storm or she got lonely when their parents were away for the weekend.

He sighed as he heard the wet slapping sounds of Haru's naked feet on the hardwood floors.

Rin looked up from where he was eating his breakfast at the island counter and watched as Haru's white knees wobbled as he leaned heavily on the door frame. Biting down on his lip, he asked; "how are you feeling?"

Haru glanced sideways at him before giving a shuddering shrug. "I ... be okay."

"Breakfast?" Rin found himself asking before he fully registered the words coming out of his mouth.

Haru shook his head. "N-No ... Swim?"

Rin glanced up at the clock, "Well I need to get to school. I can let you out if you don't mind being there all day. I won't be back to feed you until around three this afternoon, okay?" Haru blinked at him. "I'll be back after school and if you like, you can come to the swimming practice with me tonight?"

" ... Allowed?" the creature frowned.

Rin shrugged, "I can get the coach to approve. He won't mind as long as it's in the barred off lane at the end. If not you can just sit on the side and see how we do it. Then you can decide if you want to join the Iwatobi team."

"Iwa ... tobi?"

Rin cocked an eyebrow. "That's the name of the other team. Don't worry, you can see what we do. Don't worry."

Haru hummed to himself but didn't say anything else as he wobbled over to the sofa and settled down on the edge of it. He didn't move or do much else as he curled his creaking knees up to his chest, bits of dead, scaly skin fluttering to the floor, and cast his gaze out of the french doors towards the pool. A look of desperate longing filled his eyes.

Rin followed his gaze and winced at the weight that settled in his chest. All he needed to do was to set Haru up on one of the sun loungers outside, but he was really worried that the sun would get too hot and Haru wouldn't make it to the water in time before he dried out. "I can let you outside if you want," he hedged, "but are you sure you'll be alright on your own?"

Haru hummed, his chest rising and falling a little. He didn't reply.

The sun was pouring in through the window bathing his pale skin, the breeze gently ruffled the tree branches against the brilliant blue sky. He flexed his fingers under the weight of Rin's gaze. He was terrified at the prospect of a long summer stretching out ahead of him. The limitation of what was going to be a trial. Staying alone in such a large house was terrifying. Without Rin there to anchor his anxieties he knew he was going to freak out sooner or later. But what could he do?

He was stuck here. Not that he minded too much. Rin was friendly enough, if a little easily-angered.

"Outside ..." he finally murmured, his head feeling heavy from the lack of water washing through it.

Rin gave a swift nod and within moments the french doors were open and Haru was being carried over to the edge of the pool. The sun was warm on his skin and the air was fresh with the smell of cut grass and sea salt. They were so close to the sea he could almost taste it, the air burning down the back of his throat.

With a sigh, he closed his eyes and let himself relax against the sofa.

~0~

Rin was anxious as the day wore on. He had left Haru on lounger in the shade of the house, with a plate of tuna sandwiches and water in a jug with ice cubes. He hoped it was enough to keep the creature sated for the rest of the afternoon until he got home.

"Rin what's on your mind? You look worried," Makoto asked as they met up for lunch at a nearby cafe.

He shrugged and picked at his food. "Just haven't heard from my mum and sister in a while. Thinking about calling them when I get home."

"That'd be nice," Rei stated as he wiped steam off his glasses.

"Not to mention my cousin is still getting his strength back in his leg. I worry that he gets lonely."

"Why not bring him by practice tonight?" Makoto suggested. "It'd just be us, you and Sousuke can keep him company in the sectioned-off part."

"Are you sure it'd be okay?" Rin asked, feeling apprehensive about dragging Haru along to the public pool. He hadn't been up-close to the creature since he first had a tail. He wasn't entirely sure how he'd react to the chemicals in the pool.

"I don't see why it would be a problem. I'm captain so if I say it's okay, then it's okay."

Rin smiled gratefully. Makoto gave him a sympathetic smile and nudged his shoulder as they continued to eat their lunch. It was a quite affair as Nagisa was busy studying for his end-of-term exam and Rei had his nose buried in a textbook. Sousuke was off at the doctor's for his physiotherapy session. He'd strained his shoulder muscles during training and he didn't want to risk further injury.

Rin made a mental note to stop by before collecting Haru after school.

The alarm on his phone went, signalling he had ten minutes to make the walk to his next class. Thankfully, he'd finished eating a while ago. Shoving his containers into the bin by his table, he swung out from the bench and shouldered his rucksack. "I'll see you guys later tonight. I should be at the pool by 6pm."

"We have it reserved until 9PM so if you're a little late it won't be terrible," Makoto smiled, "Say 'hi' to your cousin when you see him."

"Will do!" he called over his shoulder as he hurried away, the wind tousling his hair as he walked through the sun-drenched park. It was relaxing and helped clear his mind by the time he reached his campus. The food had settled like a warm weight inside him and there was a tingling in his fingertips just itching for him to get back home. His last lecture ended at 3PM so that left more than enough time to get back home, pack his things and help get Haru into his car and drive over to the pool parking lot.

His lecture of English Translation went by in a flash and he was flying down the drive of the campus and towards the main road.

Once home, he dumped his work folders on the kitchen counter and barely stopped to breathe on his way out the french doors to the garden. The sun had gone behind the house so there was a nice long shadow that stretched out towards the pool's edge. He barely paid attention to the empty jug of water and plate resting on the lounger.

"Haru?" he called out as he crouched down at the edge of the pool. "Haru are you down there?" It seemed like a stupid question. Where else was fish boy going to be? Down the local slurping pints?

The gentle sloshing of the water broke out over Haru's head. He bobbed just above the surface, everything but his eyes still submerged in the water. He didn't make any noise. He was like an under-water ninja. Rin tapped his wristwatch and cocked his head to the side, "You gonna get out? Come swimming with me? Meet the team?"

If Haru had sighed the only reply Rin got were a few small bubbles under his nose, before he swam to the edge and deftly hauled himself out and onto the white tiles. Rin hovered over him in case he lost his balance, but thankfully the swimming seemed to be helping.

"Come on, let's get you dressed and into my car. Are you okay to walk?" he asked, crouching down as Haru shifted up onto his knees.

The creature shook his head, the scabbed over gills on his neck making Rin's throat tighten briefly. "Okay ..." Haru said.

"Let's get you up." Hooking his hands under Haru's arms, Rin managed to lift him up onto his feet and, although his legs were a little wobbly on dry land, he manage to get the merman changed into a loose shirt that clung to his wet trunks, and packed the spare tracksuit bottoms in his kit bag for later when it got dark. Despite Haru's unsteadiness, they made it into the car without any trouble. Once he explained the importance of a seat-belt to the creature, they were buckled in and driving towards the swimming pool.

The sun was setting as Rin pulled into the car park. It was empty with only Sousuke's car parked next to him. The air was getting a little cooler as he unfastened his belt and turned to undo Haru's. The blue-haired creature was sitting upright and staring intently at the dim glow coming through the windows. Rin's hands stilled and he frowned at how still Haru was. "Are you okay?"

"Worried," Haru murmured.

"About what?"

"Friend. Stare ..."

"They won't stare at you. I gave you my longest pair of trunks. They won't see anything," Rin hedged, meaning the scabbed over scales and the cobwebbed layer of skin that looked like cracked desert planes. The trunks in question were still damp and dripping onto the floor of his car, but he was trying his best to ignore it as he released the belt and unlocked the car doors. "Just head out and I'll grab the bag okay?"

Haru blinked up at him, his wide gleaming eyes boring through into Rin's soul, before fiddling with the door handle and stepping out into the cool evening air.

Rin climbed out, popped the lock on the boot of his car and grabbed the large duffel bag. He'd packed two towels and a spare pair of chino's. He didn't want to risk Haru wearing jeans in-case the rough fabric rubbed his skin raw. Slinging the bag over his shoulder he looped an arm around Haru's waist and gingerly helped the creature stumble over the uneven tarmac towards the pool house.

The heavy smell of chlorine that hit Rin like a brick wall was always enough to send shivers down his spine. The hallways, though lit, were still dim and gave the whole building a distinct and empty feel to it. The distant sound of muffled voices from the changing rooms helped guide Rin down the corridor towards the locker room, Haru trailing alongside him, his arm limp as it hung through Rin's own.

"You going to be okay?" Rin asked as he opened the door awkwardly, trying to balance a sea-creature, a duffel bag and said door. Haru leaned against him a little heavier as they shifted into the room. Everyone else was already out, probably warming up in the pool and stretching their muscles. Rin ached to dump his stuff and hurry out to the pool as well but he needed to make sure that Haru was stable enough to walk alongside him.

He took his time dressing, shooting concerned looks over at Haru as he sat stiffly on the wooden bench, looking very much like a child in the way that his wide, dark eyes roamed over the whole of the changing room. It was almost like he was assessing any possible danger within and the nearest escape route.

Once Rin was changed and had filed his belongings away in a vacant locker, including gently tugging the shirt off over Haru's narrow frame, before slipping a strong arm around the creature's waist and hauled him up to his feet. In the florescent lights, it was hard not to notice the gently cobweb scarring that marred Haru's skin, like splintered sunlight on the bottom of the pool floor.

It was hauntingly beautiful to look at.

As Rin had predicted the rest of the Iwatobi team were already in the pool and Sousuke was just finishing off a series of laps. He yanked his goggles of his head and wiped water out of his eyes. As Makoto dictated the exercises to be undertaken by his team members, Sousuke came up to the side and beckoned Rin to climb in. "I didn't realise your cousin was so scrawny, Rin," he cocked a dark eyebrow before smirking, "Are you sure he's strong enough to swim?"

Reaching out his hands, Sousuke beckoned for Rin to make the next move. Anticipating some resistance, the redhead leaned close to Haru's ear and whispered, "I'll lift you down into the water, okay? Sousuke will catch you."

Haru was tense as Rin shifted his hand under his armpits and slowly eased him off the side and into the water. Sousuke, like any born elder, caught Haru with ease and slowly lifted his weight down into the warm water. As soon as he body was submerged, Rin noticed an instant change; Haru relaxed, his limbs uncoiling from his body and floated just a few inches out of Sousuke's firm hold. Hopping down into the water with a splash, Rin grinned over at Makoto and waved him over to the partition.

Gliding over, Makoto called out instruction for the other three to keep going. At the partition he said, "Are you sure your cousin looks well enough to swim?"

Rin nodded, "He's more confident in the water at the moment. At least if he falls he won't have far to go."

The taller man smiled and tilted his head to the side before glancing over at where Haru was floating lazily on his back, his eyes staring straight up at the ceiling as his legs hovered just below the surface. He looked so relaxed so -at home. Rin felt a weight drop in his chest. He had grown used to having Haru around, ignoring the fact that sooner of later the blue-haired creature would have to return home to the ocean ... if he could.

"Well we'll see how he swims today. If he feels up to it later, maybe a quick race to check his times?" Makoto suggested, dragging Rin back to reality.

Nodding he agreed. "That sounds like a plan. Hopefully we won't distract you guys too much."

"We're not that weak-willed, Rin," the taller man beamed, the corners of his eyes crinkling.

As the swim team practiced their different strokes and their relay times, Rin and Sousuke did a more relaxed breast-stroke up and down the pool, gently working their muscles, the water lapping over their bodies, with Haru trailing along behind them. Rin couldn't help but frown; usually the boy could swim faster than that. Or maybe is smaller home-pool made it seem that way. Either way, he seemed to be too cautious in this new environment. Considering he was in a pool and the only other people there besides Rin and Sousuke, were the gentlest and youngest people, there shouldn't have been an issue.

Perhaps he was just shy?

"Hey Haru," he called over his shoulder, "Later on do you fancy showing us just how fast you can be?"

"No pressure then, eh Rin?" Sousuke mused dryly.

Haru didn't say anything. Rin stopped at the side of the pool and grasped the rough edge beside Sousuke's shoulder, before turning to wait for Haru to come up to the side. Drawing in a breath, Rin slid below the surface, goggles firmly in place. The water was soothing and cool over his head as he turned to watch Haru; the creature was so graceful, as though he was one with the water. Even as he glided closer the myriad of white and blue patterns dancing across the white skin. Before he surface, he focused in on the merman's legs. They were still there. He had no idea how grateful he was until he almost exhaled all his air. From a distance you could hardly see the webbed skin where the scales and fins used to be.

Resurfacing just as Haru reached the side, Rin swiped his hair back out of his eyes. "Why don't we turn the heat up?" he challenged with a grin. He was really eager to see what Haru was made of. "Sousuke, you in?" he asked, glancing quickly at the injured shoulder of his friend.

The tall man shook his head, "I'm going to take it easy. But you two should race or something. Hey Haru!" he called over Rin's head. Two wide, stoic eyes looked up at him. "Maybe you should show Rin that someone can beat him for once."

Haru didn't reply. He merely turned his blank expression onto the empty lane stretched out in front of them.

"What do you say Haru? Think you can beat me?" Rin smiled at the creature bobbing beside him. He hoped that his eyes were gentle enough to show Haru that he wasn't doing it to be mean. He genuinely wanted him to get better and strengthen himself and, yes, show-off a little bit. If he was going to help Makoto's team enter the championships then he needed to show them what he was capable of.

"Yes," he finally murmured, so low that the lapping of the water almost drowned it out.

A spark of excitement raced through Rin. He had never been so excited for a race. He didn't plan on going too fast just to make sure that Haru didn't strain his muscles too much.

"Sousuke, call us in!"

"Okay. Three ... Two ... One ... Go!"

Rin launched forward into the water. There was no indication if Haru had even bothered to join the race, but either way he was in the water and it felt like magic. His muscles were like iron engines tearing through the water. He wasn't focusing on the tiled floor passing by, he was in a world of his own filled of an endless blue, as though he were suspended in the deepest oceans, cut-off from the world. Just him and the water.

At the other of the pool, he made a flawless turn and then kicked back off, dominating his freestyle technique. His lungs gasped for air and his muscles were hot with a delicious burn. He loved this adrenaline! There was no way he wanted it to end.

All too soon his hand grasped onto the edge of the pool. It was always over way too soon. If it wasn't for the sharks dotting the coastline, he would happily swim in the sea.

Yanking his goggles off his head swiping the sodden hair out of his eyes and regulating his breathing, Rin stood up and flexed his muscles.

Shock almost knocked him back into the water, when he saw that Haru was already standing like an alabaster statue his expression blank and water beading down over his svelte frame. He was watching Rin with the calm stoicism that he always did. Rin wished he could read the creature, but there was just no way to do so. When he finally found his voice he was nothing if elegant. "How ... er ... how long have you been standing there?" he asked.

"He literally touched the edge about a fraction ahead of you," Sousuke observed dryly. "You sure you weren't going too easy on him, Rin?"

Rin blanched a little but nodded. He had intended to give Haru some form of leeway. He'd just -forgotten as soon as he'd launched himself. Not to mention ... he hadn't felt Haru powering away so close beside him if they were literally head-to-head for the most part. How had he achieved that? Was it a secret boost from his merman background? If so, it could easily work in Makoto's favour. "Well, if that doesn't convince Makoto to let him join I don't know what will."

"You'll have to up your game then," Sousuke smirked.

Rin rolled his eyes and ignored him. Instead he turned to Haru and placed a hand on his shoulder and dropped his voice a little. "Are you okay?"

Haru said nothing. His head bobbed in a nod just as Makoto walked along the edge of the pool and clapped his approval. "That was amazing, Rin, Haru." Perching on the edge of the pool he dipped his legs into the water and leaned forward a little, his bright green eyes observing them both. "So Haru ... how would you feel helping us to fill the blank space in our relay team?" he asked jovially.

Haru blinked slowly, his expression giving nothing away.

"Is there a preferred styled you like to swim, Haru?" Makoto asked, not caring about Haru's silence.

"Haru?" Rin nudged the creature beside him. It was like he was in a trance just _being_ in the water. "What style do you want to swim?"

Haru exhaled slowly, his pale skin shifting over every bone and muscle, the gleam of the water making something inside Rin stir. He looked steadily from the onlooking faces and if he was intimidated -since he was the smallest one there -he didn't show it. Rin bit down on his lip.

"Free ..." Haru said quietly. "I only swim ... free."


	10. X

**X**

Driving Haru to swimming practice was something that Rin was unused to. Haru would be waiting for him to arrive after classes, already dressed in swim trunks and one of Rin's shirts that sat baggily on his lithe frame. His hair would glow a dark, inky blue in the afternoon sunlight and his skin was practically opalescent.

The only downside was that a lot of the time the swimming practice times would clash with his own. That left the driving to Makoto. It wasn't a terrible situation, it just meant that Rin would worry the entire practice about how Haru would be in a team of guys he didn't know. Not to mention, if any of his side-effects presented themselves. The dry, scaly skin was easy enough to explain. Gill scars and fins springing out? Not so much.

This particular Thursday night Rin was able to leave early. He'd cut his relay time by a quarter of his original, and suffice to say he felt he'd earned a little more free time. It was a huge relief to, not just himself, but also his coach.

He walked around to the Iwatobi swimming pools, bag slung over his shoulder and being weighed down by his wet towel, and his feet crunching on the asphalt. As he neared the main doors he almost tripped over the foot of someone sitting on the small wall that housed a few bedded plants. "Oh Sor-" he cut himself off when he saw who was sitting in the dark. "H-Haru? What're you doing out here?"

The dark haired creature looked up from where he'd been drawing patterns with a broken twig. "Waiting," he said simply.

"For who? Me?"

Haru nodded.

"But I thought Makoto was going to drive you-?"

"Phone."

Blinking at such a modern word coming from the merman's mouth, Rin reached into his back pocket and pulled out his phone. Sure enough as the screen glared back at him through the darkness, it read that he had two missed calls and five unread messages all from Makoto. Opening the first of the messages Rin felt his stomach lurch.

' _Hey Rin, sorry I had to rush off and leave Haru at the pool! The twins were taken ill and I had to go and get them home! Sorry!_ '

Rin bit back a groan. The one thing you couldn't hate Makoto for, as much as you'd want to, was that whenever an excuse involved the twins, it was hard not to get worried about them too. It was like a super power. Pocketing his phone, Rin looked up just as a cool wind bit at the wet back of his neck. Haru must have been freezing his bollocks off! Reaching out a hand, he was grateful that Haru barely hesitated to grasp it and allow himself to be hauled to his feet. "Jeez I'm sorry, Haru. I guess I had my phone on silent. Come on, let's get you in my car and warmed up."

The walk to his car was only a couple minutes more into the shared schooling parking lot. The doors unlocked with a 'clunk'. He opened the passenger door for Haru to climb in, leaned over to buckle his belt, before going around to the driver's door. Once he was fastened in, he put the key into the ignition, started the engine and pulled out onto the main road. At 7PM there was still some heavy traffic from people heading home from work, or heading to clubs, bars or a night shift. Either way, it made Rin bite back all his road rage and not complain too much about it taking almost forty-five minutes to make the twenty minute journey home.

Damn those crossroads.

With their bags dumped on the kitchen counter -the towels and trunks needed to be washed and dried -Rin turned his attention to Haru. "Now, before Makoto left, did you get a chance to shower?"

Haru shook his head.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Rin sighed before heading to the downstairs bathroom down the hall, motioning over his shoulder for Haru to follow. The only indication that he was, was the soft pattering sound of his feet. Tugging the light cord, the red-haired man took an experimental sniff of the room; it no longer reeked of old fish, a problematic stink he'd had to work very hard to scrub out. Turning to Haru, he cocked an eyebrow, "Do you want a bath or a shower?"

Haru cast a stoic look at the shower-bath-combo and a small crease appeared between his eyebrows. "I ... What's a shower?"

Rin blinked. "It's the thing over the ba -are you telling me you haven't showered once since you started practicing with the team?"

The creature shook his head, an almost nervous glint entering his eyes.

A strong part of him wanted to object, wanted to say that it would mean Haru hadn't bathed in almost a month! Perhaps he was just so used to it not being an issue for him? "Okay, shower it is then. Here, I'll set it up for you okay? Now these control the temperature," leaning behind the glass screen he turned the handle of the shower, adjusting the position until the water ran fast and warm against his arm. His sleeve got soaked but he ignored it. "If you want to shut it off, just press the whole handle down, okay? It'll stop the water. To make it colder, go left. To make it hotter, go right."

Haru gave the shower a sceptical look. He wasn't convinced about it; a waterfall with no rocks or small fish and you could control what it did? Nuh uh, humans were too weird trying to control everything! Shifting from foot to foot, he opened his mouth. "I can ... have a ... bath ... later?"

Rin shook his head, "Sorry, but you stink. You need to shower. Now."

"O ... kay ..." Haru reached for the hem of his shirt and pulled it off over his head.

Rin balked. "Wha- No! Not RIGHT NOW! Let me leave the room first!" Muttering under his breath and trying not to blush too hard, Rin left the bathroom, catching a flash of Haru's athletic body as he closed the door. Once he was alone in the hall he exhaled heavily before heading into the kitchen to make something for dinner.

The tuna hissed as Rin seared the ends and then let it rest in the hot oil. The pan was old and burned to the point he was sure the base of it was a millimetre thick. As he cooked the fish he strained to listen down the hall in case Haru slipped or fell or something. It wouldn't do to start whistling if the merman somehow managed to strangle himself with a flannel.

The thought of strangling reminded Rin of the scabbed over gills and fins on Haru's body. There was still so much he didn't know about the creature. Even if he didn't know the scientific aspect of any of it, or even know his anatomy, he still didn't know where he lived, how he lived, if he had family or how he'd come to pass so close to shore. 'Perhaps I'll ask him tonight,' he thought as he turned over the baby potatoes before dishing them up with the already plated rice. He reasoned everything with a few herbs from his mother's spice rack before focusing on his tuna.

He wondered if there was anything Haru wanted to know about him? It wasn't like they'd dropped into each other's live in the middle of a family reunion. He wasn't even sure if he'd mentioned Gou or his mother, although he was sure Haru had heard him talking to them on the phone.

The fish was ready just as Haru managed to stop the shower.

"Food's ready so don't take too long drying off!" he called out. Of course Haru didn't bother replying. Rin focused on setting the table for the two of them and even filled the washing-up bowl with some tepid water and slid it under Haru's chair. He noticed how the merman fidgeted a lot when he was away from water for too long. Hopefully this scenario was enough to keep him calm through dinner as well as some questions.

Haru was almost silent as he came into the open-plan room, his legs pale sticking out from under the blue shorts and his frame drowned in a mustard-yellow hoodie. The very same one that Rin was wearing that day on the beach. Did Haru know that stirred such strange feelings inside him or was it an accident? Did he not remember? For some reason the thought that Haru's memory was like a goldfish for real, threw a whole black cloud over the evening he had planned.

Smiling, Rin said, "I made some fish for the both of us."

"Mackerel?"

Scowling lightly he shook his head. "No, Tuna."

"Okay."

Haru dutifully took his seat opposite Rin, frowning when his feet saw the bowl of water waiting for him as he drew his chair back. His bright eyes were so open in that moment that Rin had to catch his breath. Ignoring the butterflies inside him, he watched as Haru stepped into the bowl without a word and sank down into the chair. Now that they were here, face to face, Rin wasn't sure where to start. 'Where're you from?' sounded like such a bad pick-up line. With a sigh he decided to give it a go. "Hey Haru, you never told me what part of the ocean you lived in before now."

"A long way away," he said softly.

Rin rolled his eyes, suppressing the urge to kick the creature under the table. "Do you know where?"

Haru shook his head. "Not sure ... of human name ..."

"Okay. How many days did you swim before you washed up on the beach?"

With a frown Haru struggled to remember. He'd normally kept close to the ocean floor, out of the way of most direct sunlight. He'd only come nearer to the surface in order to find something other than crabs and oysters to eat. "I think ... maybe ... four days?"

Rin felt his eyes go wide. That meant that Haru could live as far out as New Zealand originally. He hadn't expected it to be so far. "But ... your name is Japanese ... How did that happen?"

Haru hummed as he ate his food. At least he was eating. "My family make ... swim every year."

"Is there a reason?"

"Follow ... migration ... to mate ..."in

That time Rin couldn't deny how pink his cheeks got. It was lucky that Haru was so intently focused on the food before him -and his newfound love for baby potatoes apparently -to pay Rin any proper attention. Taking a long drink of water, Rin tried not to choke on his next words. "To mate? You -You were looking to mate this summer?"

Humming again, the blue haired boy tilted his head to the side. "Yes ... Why?"

"D-Did you find someone before you ... washed-up?"

With a heavy sigh Haru shook his head, his eyes downcast. "No ... No one wanted me ... I was ... Swimming home ... too close to shore ... Washed up ..." he trailed off before he lifted his eyes to Rin. "Met you ..."

"Are you glad you met me?"

A small, almost shy smile tugged at the corners of the merman's mouth. Ducking his eyes again he nodded. " ... Yes. Very glad." They ate in silence for a few moments, the air between them charged with so much being left unsaid, before Haru looked up, the deep blue of his eyes making Rin's heart stutter. "Do you ... have more questions?"

Floundering for a minute Rin nodded. "I ... you can ask questions about me you know. I don't have anything to hide."

"I ask ... then you ask?"

Smiling, he nodded. "Sure. I'll let you ask one first though."

"Where's ... your dad?"

"What?" Rin blinked in shock, taken aback by Haru's choice of question.

"I hear you talk ... to your mum ... and sister ... but not your dad ..."

"There's not much to tell," he shrugged off-handily. "My dad left when I was twelve and my mum never remarried. I think looking after me and my little sister put enough strain on her without the added nonsense of a love-life. I don't know. I don't talk to my dad."

Haru watched him silently for a few moment before reaching over and poking Rin's hand with his fork. "Your turn ... to ask."

"Oh right." His skin prickled where the fork had touched him. It was the most playful thing Haru had done all summer. "So what family do you have? Mum? Dad? Sisters or brothers?"

"Only ... child," he managed, "Dad was ... eaten by shark ... mum was caught ... in speedboat ..."

The bottom of Rin's stomach fell out of him. He lost all forms of appetite and tried not to envision how grisly a speedboat motor death would be. The tuna churned inside him and he felt a little queasy. Shaking his head to refocus on the present conversation he searched for the words to apologize, or at least fill the silence. There were no words. Instead, he reached out and placed his hand over Haru's, giving a gentle squeeze. Turning his palm up, Haru stroked his fingers around Rin's wrist, grateful for the acknowledgement.

"So ... you're all alone? When you go back?" Rin asked, a hard ache inside his chest.

"Hmmm," Haru closed his eyes and tried to hold back the tears that had been pent up for so long, only really dribbling out when he'd been stranded on that beach. "Alone ..."

"Haru, I'm so sorry."

"My ... turn ..."

"What?"

"My turn ... to ask ..." He glanced up at Rin to make sure that the redhead didn't try and say anything else. Thankfully, he closed his mouth and gave a minute nod to say that he was ready and waiting. "What do ... you want to be when you ... grow up?"

Rin snorted. He couldn't help himself. It was such an inane question that so many people asked him along with, 'Where do you see yourself in five years?', 'When are you going to get a proper job instead of just swimming?' and 'What will you do after you make it to the Olympics?' So many worries and not enough time to devote to each one. It was nonsense either way. "I ... I'm not sure. If I do make it to the Olympics that'll be great but I'm not too sure what I want to do afterwards."

"You could ... travel," Haru said, "I like travelling ..."

Rin had been tempted to point out that his last travel excursion hadn't exactly ended too well. Then again, in hindsight, it hadn't ended yet. There was still a lot more summer to go. For some reason the whole 'mating season' kept coming back to mind. He was a normal guy with normal urges and he hadn't really had any in ... well ... a good while. He couldn't deny that there was a strange sort of ethereal beauty that followed Haru like an aura, but at the same time he was a guy! Not just a guy but a merman! He couldn't be aching that badly that he'd even consider ...

"Your turn ..." Haru brought him back to the present, almost jerking in his seat as the merman polished off the last of his food. Finally, the creature had an appetite!

"How long do mermen live for?"

"Ninety years ... between that and ... one hundred and seventy ... if we don't get eaten ..."

Rin felt his jaw go slack. "Wait ... so then ... how old ARE you?"

"No."

"What?"

"No," Haru repeated, "It's my ... turn."

The redhead seethed and tried to not grind his jaw into bone dust. "Fine," he spat impatiently, "ask it quickly."

"Do you have ... a mate?"

"A mate?" he frowned before it clicked in his head. "Oh! You mean like a girlfriend? No I don't have one. I used to date this girl in high school. Her name was Yana. We only dated for a few months and then I ended it." He took the plates over to the sink before turning back to Haru, his hands holding onto the counter for support. "Now, I repeat, how old are you, Haru?"

"Why does ... it matter?" he asked tightly, his face paling considerably more.

"I just want to know," Rin said, his voice neutral now. It wasn't that it would bother him. He hadn't really thought about it until now but, thinking on it, Haru could be in his eighties and it wouldn't do anything but impress him. "Please?"

Haru let out a long sigh, his arms braced on the table and his head bowed to his chest. "I -I'm ... fifty-two ..."

Rin was stunned for the umpteenth time that evening but all it did was make him smile as the words sank in. "Well if it makes you feel any better, you look pretty good for your age."

The creature gave him a wry smile before muttering, "Thanks."

"We don't have to do this anymore if you don't want," Rin said, sensing that Haru was gradually becoming more and more tired as the moments passed. "Let me wash up and we can watch a movie or something."

Haru nodded, "Okay." He stood up from the table and gingerly stepped out of the bowl of water and onto the towel Rin had laid down next to it. Dabbing his toes dry, he then made his way over into the living room and sat down on the sofa, knees drawn up to his chest. Rin retrieved the bowl from under the table, rinsed it out, and then added soap and hot water for the greasy dishes. Within twenty minutes all the dishes were scrubbed clean and draining on the side. Heading over the the DVD stand by the TV, Rin looked around for a movie that maybe Haru would like. He knew that the creature was still new to the whole concept of a TV and movies but he seemed to be enjoying them so far.

For now, though, he opted to watch THE MUMMY.

As it turned out, half way through the movie he was starting to feel quite tired from his practice session whereas Haru had fallen asleep nuzzled up against his shoulder about ten minutes into the film. With a sigh he shut the TV off and pinched the bridge of his nose. It really had been a long evening and he was not looking forward to getting up for classes in the morning. With a yawn he stood up and stretched the kinks out of his muscles before turning his attention to Haru. Any normal person would leave him and just throw a blanket over his legs.

Rin wasn't going to do that. Not after the chat they'd had.

Instead, he bent down and gathered the merman up in his arms, feeling how light and frail he really was, before turning his attention towards mounting the main staircase. Once he'd reached the landing he was faced with an issue that had been burning in his head for the last two weeks. In the end, the small tremor in his knees answered for him. Cradling Haru to his chest, he made his way to his and his not-so-huge bed, before shutting the door behind him with a kick.


	11. XI

**XI**

Haru was a hugger; that was the first thought that punched through Rin's sleepy brain the following morning.

He was dimly away of drifting awake, his mind still content to remain oblivious to the world. His body was warm and curled up into a tight ball despite the heat outside. The cool sheets were soft again his skin where he'd tugged his shirt off during the night. Although they weren't as soft or as cool as the body lying half on top of him. Cracking open a bleary eye, he peered over the edge of the bed. There was another arm draped lazily over his own; the skin was pearly white against the soft tan of his own. The silky touch of hair tickled against his shoulder blades making him flex automatically.

Haru was not only cuddling him in his sleep, but also being so intimately close with him that there were next to no barriers between them. He shifted, initiating a soft sigh from the creature on top of him. He was dimly aware of a narrow, hard pressure against his hip.

He didn't want to make a big deal about any of it. It was Sunday morning and Sousuke wanted them all to meet at the local swimming baths for some private swimming time. They wanted to see how strong Iwatobi's team were now that Haru had joined them, and to see, not only what competition they now had, but also if Makoto's training regime even _had_ what it'd take to get them through into Nationals.

With a grunt, he pried himself out from under Haru's limp form and started to dress for the dark. He was downstairs and making some omelettes for breakfast before Haru had even traipsed downstairs to stand in the shower for ten minutes. It was becoming a daily routine, now, to take at least a ten minute shower before and after sleeping. Perhaps he was just always used to being hydrated? Either way, Rin sometimes worried about walking down the high street with the merman in case he dove into a puddle or stripped off in front of someone watering their garden.

It wouldn't do to get fined for public nudity among other things.

"Breakfast's ready!" he called out as he plated the omelettes, dropping the pan into the kitchen sink already filled with soapy water. It was another moment or two before the shower shut off. There was the low thump of a wet towel being dropped to the floor, and then the sound of the door unlocking. Haru emerged into the open-plan room a minute later, his damp hair glistening in the morning sunlight, and his skin looking as glossy as an eels. It was almost eerie how serpentine Haru managed to look just by getting wet.

They ate in silence, Rin's eyes constantly going to the scabbed over gills at Haru's neck, a defect gone unnoticed so far by the members of Iwatobi. Thanks to Haru's hair being longer at the back, the scars remained hidden for the time being.

Once they'd eaten, they dumped their stuff in the trunk and drove to the swimming baths; Rin was anxious to get into the cool water and stretch his muscles out. Swimming for leisure was something he had missed. He's almost forgotten how to do it, but those rare moments he could -he enjoyed them immensely. "Do you remember what I told you about the relay?" Rin asked as they entered the air-conditioned bath house.

Haru nodded his head as he clutched the strap of his bag tighter. Rin paid the admin fee and then the two of them went to the locker room, keys in hand. "I remember ... all that you tell me ..."

Rin tried to fight the flush on his cheeks. He prayed he could blame it on the heat as they entered the locker room. The steam from the showers hung low and damp in the air. "Well make sure you remember it when you're out there swimming. Sousuke and I will be there to help coach you and the others, but Makoto gets final say on the strategy okay?"

"Will it be weird ... for you?" Haru asked as he effortlessly changed into his trunks; simply pulling the thin shirt off over his head and folding it neatly onto the shelf of his lower.

"What do you mean?" Rin frowned, his sharp teeth catching on his cheek. A nervous habit he couldn't quite shake.

"Us swimming ... against each other," Haru said not looking up from stretching his legs. "What if I beat you?"

"Then it's up to the judges and the final scores to decide." He noticed the worried frown on Haru's face and felt a tug on his heart. He touched a hand to the creature's shoulder, squeezing him reassuringly, "Don't worry about us, okay? We'll be fine. As long as you give it your all and don't worry about it."

Haru didn't look overly convinced but he didn't say any more on the matter as they walked out towards the main pool.

Two hours later and Rin had exhausted himself.

The practice had been more than successful with Haru doing his utmost to beat Rin's improved times and had even remembered to kick as hard as he could when he did the return lane for the relay. Being the last in the group meant that it was down to Haru to make up for any and all short-comings the other team had made. It wasn't an easy task and many people faltered under the sheer weight of the pressure.

Haru hadn't, though.

It was almost hypnotic watching the way he swam; it was almost as though he didn't care about the actual race. All he cared about was swimming, and clearly this was the perfect excuse for him to show just how effortlessly fast and powerful he could be in the water. Rin couldn't help but wonder what he would be like in sea water instead of a pool soaked in chlorine.

He needed to get a grip on himself. He'd almost lost control and drooled in front of Sousuke as they'd watched Haru's elegant, stream-lined form shoot past them, the spray hitting their legs and faces as they sat at the pools edge.

Overall, a highly successful practice. Especially if Makoto's beaming smile was anything to go by as he walked alongside Sousuke, lacing their fingers together and excitedly gushing about Nationals.

Two weeks. That was all it was. Two weeks until the end of summer, Nationals being the pivotal climax of the entire season.

Rin tried his best not to think about it as he tossed his and Haru's bags into the trunk of his car and wiped the moisture from his brow. He'd been so pleasantly cool not too long ago, and now the sun was going to render his shower pointless. Great.

"Who wants to go and meet Nagisa and Rei for some lunch?" Makoto asked after checking a message on his phone. "They said they're at the high street near the aquarium and do we want to meet up?"

"Sounds good to me," Sousuke said, nonplussed.

"Great. Rin, Haru?"

"Er ..." Rin glanced down at Haru, trying to gauge his reaction. "Er ... do you want to go, Haru?" he finally asked, not knowing of a better way to be discreet in front of his friends.

Haru looked at him with the usual blank expression before shrugging. "Hm," was his only reply.

"Okay, let's drive up there then. We still have until 6PM before everything closes up." Makoto slipped the car keys out from Sousuke's back pocket. At the black-haired man's protests, he shook his head, "You're not driving. You need to rest your shoulder if I'm going to beat you at Nationals."

Rin had to bite back a smirk as the two headed across the parking lot towards Sousuke's car. Turning to Haru, he tried to put on a brave face. "You see? Those two are dating and they're still competing."

"Dating? Like us?" Haru asked, sliding into the passenger seat.

Rin suddenly got hot and speechless all at once. He fiddled to wind down the windows and tried to find his voice. "What do you mean 'like us'? No, those two are in a relationship; they kiss, and hug and sleep together."

"We do all ... those things ..." Haru pointed out.

This time, Rin's face definitely did go red. "What?" he spluttered, "No we most certainly do _not_ do all those things!"

Haru heaved a sigh, a sound so heavy for someone so delicate, before he dove across the gear-stick and pressed his cool lips to Rin's. The redhead was so shocked that he just sat there, stunned, as he watched Haru's black lashes flutter against his cheeks, and felt the soft pressure on his mouth before it slowly pulled away an inch, just enough for Haru to draw a soft breath.

"Now ... we do," he murmured against Rin's lips before he settled back down into his own seat, looking calm and stoic as he eased his belt into the buckle and waited for Rin to move.

"THE FUCK WAS THAT?!" Rin exclaimed, the only sensible thing springing to mind. Why was it so easy for Haru to do such a thing? Had he been giving the merman confusing signals by holding him up when he staggered on weak legs or letting him share his bed? Refocusing his attention on the creature, he shoved his shoulder. "Oi, I don't know where the fuck you think you are, but here, men do not just kiss other men!"

"Makoto kisses Sousuke," Haru observed, his blank eyes staring straight ahead.

"That's different!"

"Why?"

"Because they are in _LOVE_ that's why!"

"Hm," Haru hummed to himself, the sound somehow so heart-wrenching it forced Rin to look away. He gripped his steering wheel and tried his best to compose himself. Glancing back up, he saw that Haru's eyes, while still blank, had a shine to them that wasn't there before. That hadn't been there since he'd talked about the failed attempts at mating ... and about how old he was ... and how he'd looked longingly out at the pool back at the house.

That's when a vague picture started to take shape in Rin's mind. "Oh ..." he breathed. The tension in his body faded into a discomfort. Not at Haru himself, but at the knowledge slowly being dredged to the surface. "Haru ... do you ...?"

"Drive," the creature said, almost coldly.

"I'm ... what?"

"Drive. Nagisa and Rei ... waiting for us."

Rin blinked. There was a hollow feeling growing inside of him and he couldn't place his finger on what it was. Something had shifted between the two of them and, even as he focused most of his brain on driving into the city, there was still a large part of him that was longing to say something, anything, that would coax Haru into conversation. The creature had kissed him, seemingly out of nowhere, or to prove a point, he wasn't sure. All he did know was that whatever they had between them ... it wasn't platonic after all.

He'd had weird stirrings, almost feelings, for the creature. His elegant beauty and simplistic needs coupled with his surprisingly speed and admiral strength made it all too easy. However, all of that as well as getting to know more about him, being with him all day and all night ... it had made them into something new, something different. He wasn't sure what it was but he was positive that it wasn't like Makoto and Sousuke.

Hell, half the time he was lucky if he got a full sentence out of the merman!

The rest of the drive into the city was done in silence. A silence only broken up by Rin softly cursing other drivers under his breath as well as his sidelong glances at Haru. The creature hadn't moved since their ... was it an argument? He couldn't tell. Whatever it had been, he had barely moved a muscle, choosing to stare straight ahead with a tight jaw and cold, unseeing eyes.

If Rin didn't know any better, he'd wager a guess that he'd hurt the merman deeply.

~0~

Lunch went by in a flash with mostly Nagisa chattering away like he was hooked up on adrenaline. There was never a polite way to tell the blonde boy to shut the hell up. Although, Rin had to admit, for once he was grateful that Rei and Nagisa seemed to navigate the conversation in whatever direction they saw fit. Things had been tense with Haru ever since they'd left the parking lot. The creature couldn't even look across the table at him. It left Rin with next to no appetite, but he forced himself to eat just to have something to do.

"AH, so are we all ready to go to the aquarium?" Nagisa chimed once they had all left their table and threw their rubbish in the bins.

"I'd say so," Makoto grinned, "Rin, Haru, are you guys ready?"

"Sure," Rin tossed his napkin onto his pile of plastic containers before carrying it over to the bin and dumping it in. "Haru, come on, we're leaving."

The blue-haired man made no comment as he slid out from his bench and followed the rest of the gang. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and bowed his head to the pavement. Rin kept looking over his shoulder at him, but Haru's eyes remained downcast. There was a heavy weight inside his chest that felt like he was suffocating. Fifty-two years he had swam through the oceans, exploring deeper than any humans had dared to venture, and yet despite all of his wanderings and his arriving early and leaving last of all mating seasons ... he hadn't found anyone who wanted to spend any time with him.

Until he'd become human.

Until he'd found Rin -or rather, Rin had found him.

It had been a fast summer, but he was certain that his feelings were strong for the red-haired man walking up ahead of him. He'd felt similar things, sure, for other mermen and mermaids alike, yet nothing had ever gotten past the acknowledgement stage.

Rin, however, Rin was different.

He took the time to tend to Haru's wounds, to encourage him to speak and to make small strides in getting Haru's confidence back up. Every time he reached out and touched Haru's skin to help him towards the bathroom, onto the sofa or even out of the pool, it set fire to every molecule of Haru's body. It was like an underwater volcano came alive inside him, flushing his skin pink so much that Rin would fret that he'd gotten sunburned and insist on putting sun cream on him.

He'd wanted to tell Rin that his skin would peel off ten times faster than regular humans, but the pressure of Rin's hands running over him made his stomach flip.

Not that any of it mattered anymore. Rin didn't want to kiss him. Rin didn't want _him_ in any way, shape or form. He would just do the competition for Makoto and then when the summer was over ... he would simply leave. That was what they'd had planned for the entire summer anyway, so why did the prospect leave a bitter taste in his mouth? Why wouldn't he want to go back to the ocean where he could live out the rest of the next century talking to no one ... and having no one to swim and explore alongside him ... no one to slide and writhe with in the damp sands of far off islands ... No, why would they cripple his soul?

A grunt came from his throat as he collided with Sousuke's back.

Glaring up through his fringe he noticed that everyone had stopped outside a large building with silly images of fish and whales on the sides. They looked so silly. Haru frowned up at them as they made their way in through the entrance before making their way up to the counter and asking for tickets to get inside. Haru hovered at the back, inhaling the sickly scents of fake sea-water, wet sank and scale rot. He could smell it all but he doubted anyone else could with the way they smiled and chattered away like nothing was weird and hanging in the air like a musk.

"Haru-chan, we're going inside now!" Nagisa beamed, tugging at his sleeve. "Come on, let's go and see the coral life!"

Haru let himself be dragged along behind the rest of the group as they went into the fake cave-like structures that housed lots of tanks with foul smelling water and housed different types of starfish. Looking at the spongy arms, Haru felt his gut growl. It had been ages since he'd treated himself to starfish. He stuffed his hands deeper into his pockets, not trusting himself to just lunge for the starfish and devour it.

Stepping through an archway he heard Nagisa sigh in wonderment as the bright blue lights highlighted the tanks filled with clown fish, angel fish and other varieties of small, brightly coloured fish swimming about from side-to-side. Haru wrinkled his nose a little, remembering the constant chase of trying to get one of the flighty buggers into his mouth. Eventually, he and a swarm of other merfolk had had to leave the reef completely. Shaking his head, he moved on into the darkening halls illuminated only by the windows that housed tanks of fish.

He didn't pay attention to the way the fish all seemed to glide in his direction as he walked past their tanks.

Rin, however, did.

The fish tanks themselves weren't anything spectacular; for the most part they all just went to the plaques up beside each tank describing each species of fish along with a photo. Haru didn't like to brag, but he already knew more about the fish than anything that the humans would ever care to learn. Not to mention he wanted to get as far away from the tiny gits as possible. They were like a school of Nagisa's; loud, hyper with high voices that practically whistled in his ear.

The glass did nothing to mute them.

Stepping through a blackened archway, they entered a large room with benches arced around the room, facing toward the inside of a ginormous tank. Haru felt his stomach drop into his shoes; it was all so beautiful. He hadn't seen such a large body of clear, blue water since he'd beached himself. His skin tingled with the ache to strip of his clothes and dive into the depths with the other mammals. He wanted to swim as gaily and freely as they were, frolicking lazily in the water that was, no doubt, the perfect temperature and with the perfect chemical balance so as to not irritate his scales. His gills throbbed under the scarred tissue.

He let out a wet gasp as he let his legs guide him closer to the thick glass wall between him and his dream. The others ooh-ed and aah-ed behind him, but he quickly tuned them out. Groups of teenagers and parents with young children drifted in and out with their loud voices that Haru almost missed what the turtle and sharks were saying. In hindsight, he wished he'd eavesdropped on what the children were saying instead.

' _Look at that silly merman! Look how he still has his cycloid scales! When are you gonna mate and get your adult Ctenoid's, Guppy!"_ jeered one of the sharks, barring its large teeth in a mocking grin.

' _You're right. Even I've mated at least twice and I'm only seventy-nine_ ,' rumbled the turtle as its head lulled from side-to-side in the forged currents. _'It's always the small ones you know. They are the runts. No one can love them.'_

Haru felt a lump rise in his throat. It wasn't his fault. Some merfolk mated later in life, that didn't mean it would never happen for him. It would just take time for him to find the right person to mate with. Tears stung at the back of his eyes and he clenched his fists in his pockets, trying desperately not to let the tears fall. Least of all in front of the other guys. It was all too much; the jeers, the taunting, the mixing smells cloying at his senses ...

"S-Sorry," he choked out before dashing off through a long maze of illuminated tunnels.

"Haru, don't! You'll get lost!" Makoto called out after him.

"Should we go after him?" Rei asked with a frown marring his features.

Rin shook his head, "No it's okay. You guys go on ahead. I'll wait for him here and see if he comes back."

Sousuke frowned even deeper. "Are you sure that's wise? We can help you look for him?"

With a sigh, Rin relented. "Okay fine, let's split up and text each other if you find him."

"Right. Let's meet up outside in an hour if we don't find him. We'll have to call security otherwise," Makoto stated. Rin pulled a face but didn't object to the plan as they divided up into three groups and went their separate ways. Rin was left to his own devices as he took one of the other underwater tunnels.

Aquariums were different when you weren't surrounded by a large gaggle of people yelling and chirruping away about how pretty the fish were. Left to his own thoughts, Rin could see how entrancing such a place was when it had quietened down. Clearly the day outside was wearing on and people were eager to end the day and get back home for dinner. He wouldn't go home without Haru. There was no question about it, it just wasn't going to happen. He needed to apologise for being so insensitive to Haru. The kiss had just caught him off-guard that was all.

From one darkened room to the next, Rin drifted with his hands in his pockets and his head permanently tilted upwards to gaze up at the lazily swimming creatures around him. No wonder he was so enraptured with watching Haru swim. Maybe he just really, really liked fish.

He smiled despite himself as he came to a stop at an almost blacked out alcove at the base of a footbridge over a pair of sting-ray pools. A skinny, pale figure was hunched over, sobbing into his knees. Rin hurried down the stairs, his heart in his throat, as he stopped a few meters away from the creature. It was definitely Haru. Relief washed through him as he edged a little nearer, the open window looking into the sting-ray tank bathing the alcove in a soft blue light.

"Hey," he kept his voice low as he crouched down by Haru. "I got really worried there for a minute," he said. "Why did you run away?"

Haru sniffed loudly before rubbing at his red-rimmed eyes. "Th-the sharks ... making fun o-o-of me!" His voice cracked and he sobbed into his knees again.

The sound was so high and shrill it made Rin wince and inch away. "What do you mean the sharks are making fun of you?" Gosh, that was a weird sentence. Rin never thought he'd say something like that in his life. Not even as a joke.

"They -Say -I'm -Unlovable," Haru choked out through broken sobs that made his voice crack even more. "That I-I'll never ... find my m-m-mate!"

"Oh Haru." Rin tugged his jeans up and sat down on the raised edge next to the merman, placing a firm, warm hand on the thin creature's shoulder. "Listen to me; you are not unlovable. You're a little distant sometimes and hard work to talk to but you are far from ever being unlovable."

Haru scoffed, a horrible, wet, snivelling sound that sounded like he was about the phlegm down his shirt. "Merfolk d-don't love me ... humans don't love me ..." he paused for a breath before more hot, silent tears rushed down his cheeks. "R-Rin doesn't ... even love me ..."

 _Oh!_ Suddenly it all made sense. That was why Haru was suddenly more receptive; it wasn't because he was becoming more human and could properly understand the things around him, it was because he was growing more and more feelings for Rin. A weird fuzzy feeling started up in his stomach and Rin had to chastise himself for force-feeding so soon after swimming.

"Haru, I didn't mean -"

Haru shook his head as he roughly dried his face with the hem of his shirt, the blue light catching on his back and ribs. Sniffing loudly, the merman said in a thick voice, "I'll find my own way home."

Rin blinked. "What? You can't! It'll take you too long to walk and you don't have money for a taxi. No." Rin sat up straighter. "I'll wait with you. I want to, Haru. I want you to come home with me. I want to know you're safe. Please, believe me?"

"No. Go home. I'll ... find my way."

Watching Haru's profile for a little while; he looked so beautiful and ethereal in the soft blue lights from the tank behind him. The rippling effect of light against his hair and skin made Rin tingle all over. He tried to reach out and take hold of Haru's hand with his own, but the creature was having none of it, choosing instead to curl up on the ledge, his knees pressed his chest and propping his chin on top.

In that moment, he looked more like a lost boy than ever before.

The sight was enough to make Rin hesitate a moment longer. He really didn't want to leave but Haru clearly didn't want his company. He wanted to be left alone, to mourn whatever he felt like he'd lost. There was nothing else to do but do as Haru had demanded; standing up, Rin brushed down the seat of his jeans before raking a hand through his hair and heaving a soft sigh. "I guess I'll see you later then ... Haru."

Without a backwards glance, Rin was gone leaving Haru alone in the blue-lit alcove to let the tears roll hot and free down his cheeks, soaking into his borrowed shirt and irritating his skin to no end. It did nothing to quell the pain in his heart or the ache over-taking his soul. He just wanted to be loved, but apparently there were some things that even praying didn't get you in this lifetime. At least when he had his parent's he'd felt somewhat loved, but had secretly always envied them for their love of one another. He had simply wanted what they'd had.

He didn't know how long he stayed, sitting on that ledge leaning against the tank's glass. The sting-rays were sweet enough, the babies all wanting to say 'hi' and wondering why he was so sad. Eventually though lights started to get turned off to initiate 'night-time' for the aquatic life. Haru almost fell for it himself. Standing up on sore legs he joined the last few people who were still eager to take selfie's with the sting-rays before heading home. He hung at the very back, the urge to climb into the tank with the fish growing more and more the further away he walked.

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, he focused on putting one foot in front of the other until he drew nearer the large 'EXIT' sign overhead. He could feel the weight of eyes on the back of his neck and tried not to think of what evil little flounder was sneering at him now. He ignored the heat of the eyes, not even bothering to turn at the soft whispering he heard as he passed the last few tanks, before stepping out into the gift shop.

Haru let his large eyes wonder over the stuffed critters and couldn't help but twist his mouth into a grimace. He should've stayed with the group. At least then he might have gotten a little stuffed octopus or a dolphin.

"Pick one," a voice in his ear made him jump.

Looking up through his fringe he was stunned to see Rin's soft features smiling tenderly down at him. His little, forlorn heart skipped a beat. "You ... you came back?" he asked, his hands shaking that Rin cared enough about him to bother coming all the way back just to find him.

Rin smiled a little wider, showing the point of his teeth. "No, Haru. I never left."

That was all it took for Haru to crumble up inside. Rin was quick to wrap him in his arms and hug him to his chest. "Hey, hey, hey, now, it's okay I've got you," he crooned into Haru's dark blue hair. Pushing himself up onto his feet and stepping just out of reach of Rin's arms, Haru wiped at his eyes and shuddered. Rin unzipped his hoodie and draped it around Haru's shoulders before nudging him towards the shelves. "Go on, pick whichever one you want."

Screwing his face up in concentration, Haru scanned the shelf of stuffed animals, trying hard to keep his hammering heart contained in his chest. Finally, his hand clasped around a palm-sized dolphin with small black eyes and, what could only be described as, a resting bitch-face.

Rin snickered a little as they went up to pay. "That dolphin is 'you' to perfection."

Haru didn't know what he meant by that and he didn't really care. All he cared about was that they were walking through the almost empty car park to Rin's car, bundled in a jumper that smelled of everything he loved, and being hugged close to the man that made everything inside him quiver. Not to mention, he now had a little dolphin tucked away in his pocket that had a small ink-stain on the tail.

Haru didn't mind though; the ink stain was in the shape of a very, very small heart.

It made him smile all the way home.


	12. XII

**XII**

One week. That was seven days. Seven days before everyone would be on their way to Tokyo for the championships.

In those seven days Rin had noticed a definite change in his relationship with Haru; sleeping together every night was surprisingly comforting. Waking up every morning to have slender arms draped over his torso was surreal as well as heart-warming. He'd missed having company around. The nightly phone calls to his mum and Gou weren't really enough to push back the void that had grown over the space of the summer, encompassing the entirety of the house. It wasn't just the closeness that he loved; Haru himself had come out of his shell a lot more too. Not only was the creature unrealistically affectionate after his years of isolation, he -with the newfound freedom of walking -was always picking things up on their trips around town.

For instance, there was at least one silver bowl filled with smooth pebbles or brightly coloured sea-shells on each floor of his house. Not that Rin minded really. They looked nice against the sunlight. Probably too bland for when the winter months rolled in, but as the sun passed over them, the subtle colours made him smile as he breezed past.

It was also seven days in which Rin decided to take Haru for walks -and sometimes jogs -along the beach near his home. He wasn't too sure why he did, at first, but he thought it had something to do with trying to make the merman as comfortable as possible. It was just pot luck that he lived right along the coast.

Being back in a routine was nice as well. Rin jogged up and down along the beach, the sand gritty in his shoes and against his bare legs before he returned to the spot where he'd left Haru. They'd eat their packed breakfast from the rucksack and drink red tea from a thermos before Rin would spend almost an hour each morning trying to teach Haru to skip a pebble. He was almost getting the hang of it, after four days of practice, but the pebbles usually sank far sooner than Rin's.

Being so close to the ocean made Haru relax completely and to feel the damp sand beneath his feet relieved an ache inside him. He was so close to feeling free and normal again but there was still something cloying about not daring to go back into the salt water.

Being on the damp sand alone made the dull ridges of scales etch out of his smooth, white skin -he dreaded how Rin would handle him diving into the depths and regrowing his tail in the blink of an eye.

Classes were long over now and all the exams had been taken so now there was nothing to do but relax and enjoy the rest of the summer as well as practice.

It had gotten to the point where they were both practicing at least four nights a week. Most of the time their practices were on the same evening so Rin would just drive around to the Iwatobi campus after his own session had ended and pick Haru up from the parking lot, if Makoto wasn't driving him home of course. On the nights where they did practice on different days, Makoto drove Haru home. It was a nice set-up.

On their days off, Rin and Haru would swim at least an hour or two in the pool in his back garden, after drenching the redhead in sun cream.

Finally, Friday morning dawned, the day that they would pack some clothes and head to the meet-up area where they would get the coach and travel up to Tokyo for the championships. Both teams were taking the coach, despite being competitors, as it worked out a lot cheaper and easier than hiring two coaches to head to the same place. Besides, there was more than enough space for both teams and more.

Climbing up into the air-conditioned vehicle, Rin grabbed Haru's bag from the seat next to the one he was occupying, and hoisted it up into the overhead compartment along with his own bag. The aisle was narrow and people kept trying to push past him to get to the free seats behind. Rin glared at them and sneered. It was far too early in the day for pushing and shoving and it would only serve to annoy him even more. He took his time sliding into his seat and buckling his belt, ignoring the glares sent his way from passing teammates. Everyone was tired and irritable and exhausted from their intensive training over the last week and a half.

"How're you feeling?" Rin asked once everyone was buckled in and the driver pulled the coach out of the parking lot and onto the main road.

Haru was looking a little paler than normal and was unusually quiet compared to the last week they'd spent together. He blinked slower, and his movements were sluggish. It was all probably due to waking up at 5AM but Rin couldn't ignore the niggling at the back of his head. Haru nodded slowly, before sighing and shifting lower in his seat, arms folded in his lap. Rin felt his heart thump heavily in his chest. There wasn't anything he could do except wrap an arm around Haru's shoulders and draw him against his chest, letting the merman sleep for the entire journey.

Both teams were staying in a B&B for the weekend, leaving first thing Monday morning, and luckily for them, they got to room with whoever they wanted. The rooms had been paid for so as long as all of them were used, no one cared who roomed with who. Suffice to say, Rin, Haru, Makoto and Sousuke were glad for that news.

Haru sat down on the bed and stared out of the window whilst Rin made use of the chest of drawers on the other side of the room. He unpacked their two bags before tossing them into the empty wardrobe in the corner. "Are you hungry?" he asked as he straightened up and flexed his shoulders. Over nine hours in a coach with only a brief stop for lunch was agony for the muscles. Everything felt cramped and no amount of stretching seemed to ease the tension.

Haru shook his head. "Not ... really."

Rin frowned. They hadn't eaten much on their 'lunch break' and they'd probably need an early night to make up for the early start. Ergo, dinner would be within three hours tops.

A knock came from the door.

Rin strode over and answered the door to see Sousuke and Makoto. "Hey guys, what's up?"

"Well I'm starving," Makoto said, "and I figured you guys might be too, so we were gonna head downstairs and get something to eat. Wanna come?"

"Er ..." Rin glanced over his shoulder. "Hey Haru? Are you sure you don't want anything to eat?"

Haru's shoulders slumped but he didn't turn to look at any of them. "Tired ..." was all he said before he laid down on the furthest of the twin beds, and dragged the thin throw blanket up over his legs.

"I guess it's just us three," Sousuke stated.

Rin nodded as he grabbed his wallet from where he'd tossed it on the floor. "I'll be back soon Haru! Try and rest okay?"

There was nothing but silence as Rin closed the door.

~0~

Saturday was the day of no mistakes. Both teams were up at the crack of dawn and drove to the nearby pool house to train for the day. Twelve hours of swimming was enough to exhaust anybody, but Haru seemed to bear the brunt of it all on his narrow shoulders. His times had been damn near perfect, as though every ounce of strength had gone into pushing himself as hard as he could.

That night as he flopped down on the bed, Rin was at his side in an instant with painkillers and a tall glass of water with ice clinking inside.

"Here. Drink this, it will make you feel better," he said as he sat down on the edge of Haru's bed. The blue-haired man eased himself up into a sitting position, his movements stiff and lethargic as he accepted the glass and the pills. Rin watched him with a steady gaze and pursed his lips together. "You need to get as much rest as you can," he finally said.

"Thanks ..." Haru breathed once he'd downed most of the water.

Rin set the glass on the side as the creature slipped beneath the blanket again. He watched Haru's eyes stare blankly for a while before he brushed the dark blue hair out of his face. "You don't need to push yourself so hard. The race is tomorrow but you need to remember you're only doing this as a favour to Makoto and the rest of Iwatobi. First priority, however, is your health. I don't want you getting ill."

"Won't get ill," Haru strained. "Just need ... sleep."

"I don't care what you think," Rin stated matter-of-factly. "I want you to be okay. Otherwise you'll spend the rest of summer tucked up in bed from exhaustion."

"You ... worry ... too much." Rin pressed his lips together but couldn't deny the truth behind the statement. Haru turned his head to the side and reached up to run a hand through Rin's hair. "Rin? Lay down ... with me?"

It wasn't an odd request. Not really. They lied this way almost every night, tucked up into one another. However, to do it consciously was ... a whole new level of intimacy. Easing himself down onto the mattress, Rin felt every spring bend under his weight as he nestled his head on the pillow in front of Haru's. Curling an arm under his head he relaxed and breathed softly. The feel of Haru's cold skin against his made him shiver against the creature's chest as Haru slid an arm around the redhead's abdomen in a tender embrace.

Haru wriggled closer, tightening his hold on Rin's waist and nuzzling the nape of his neck.

The redhead couldn't help but smile and finally feel sleep dragging at his mind, his own arm coming up to drape over Haru's and lace their fingers together.

"Rin?"

"Yes Haru?"

"I ... I mnh."

Rin peaked over his shoulder. Haru's eyelids had dropped closed. The poor thing was far too exhausted. He needed to rest as much as possible if he had any chance in placing in the championships tomorrow.

They both did.

~0~

Today was the day. It was nothing but heat from both the sun and the mass of bodies swarming around for their seats. The lanes had been laid in the pool and the judges were at their station.

It had been a long and arduous morning; Haru was still feeling ill and despite the painkillers, was still swaying a little on his feet as he lined up with the rest of the Iwatobi team. From his position in the next line-up down, Rin watched the skinny figure slump a little as the referee ticked off everyone's names from the list. Rin couldn't stop his fingers from twitching. He felt nervous -not of the race -but for Haru's well-being. He didn't want the merman to exert himself for no real reason.

The races had gone well. The other teams might as well not have bothered showing up because it seemed like, as of half-way through the day, it was a tie between Iwatobi and Samezuka.

Now there was only one race left; the relay.

Rin could feel every muscle in his body going tense as he rolled the small cramp out of his shoulders. It wouldn't do to cramp halfway through the last lay and be the one to let his team down. His eyes kept trailing over to where Haru stood at the back of the line in the next lane over. Close enough to talk to, not close enough to touch -and neither action was allowed.

First up was the back-stroke.

Rin had seen them practice a few times over the summer but now that hundreds of eyes were watching down on them, Makoto's face was even more determined as he popped back up from the water and took his starting position, holding onto the rails of the diving block. His stroke was fast and determined, much like when they had been children.

As soon as he tapped the base of the block, Nagisa shot off into a seamless breaststroke, gaining evening more speed when he kicked back from the other end.

Rin was scratching the inside of his wrist by the time Rei dove into the water and performed his butterfly. He had to look away. Rei, as nice a guy as he was, was the weakest swimmer of them all. Especially in comparison to Haru.

_Haru._

Rin felt a lump rise in his throat as he curled his toes over the edge of the block. His heart was hammering in his chest, the cool feel of the water just inches below him -and all he kept thinking was how he hoped Haru didn't face-plant into the water from exhaustion.

Sousuke tapped the block and that was it -he sprang forward into the water, a fire burning inside him as he dominated the every ripple and powered through. The water was his sanctuary, his second home, being in it felt nothing but natural. The strokes were effortless and as powerful as he could master, his lungs -so used to the adrenaline -burned beautifully as he kicked off from the opposite side.

Everything was getting close; the diving block ... the score board ... the clock ... it was all so close ...

_TAP!_

Exploding from the water, Rin finally felt his heart catch up with him. He drew in deep calming breaths, unsurprised to see Haru panting heavily in the next lane beside him. Both their teams were cheering. Glancing up at the score board, Rin did a double-take. Not only had Rin won the championship for his Academy but Haru had also helped place Iwatobi in second place, their time was only three seconds apart!

That was going to be a time many would struggle to beat in future years.

Sousuke bent down on the pools edge and held out his hand for Rin to take. Climbing out of the pool was a little trickier considering that his knees were shaking. _They'd won._ The news still refused to sink into his brain. As the judge gave the final announcement, stating that Samezuka definitely had placed in first and were declared the winners, Rin's eyes wondered back over to Haru. He was leaning heavily against Makoto's side, his eyes red as though the chlorine had irritated them and his skin was paler than normal. He looked dreadfully ill and as though he was about to pass out.

The thought had barely crossed his mind when the creature's knees gave out and he sank down towards the wet floor.

"HARU?" he cried out as he pushed through the damp bodies to get to Haru who, had thankfully been caught by Makoto. Rin wrapped his arms around the limp body and eased himself onto his knees. "Makoto, get the first aid guy! Hurry!"

Sousuke crouched down beside him, a look of worry on his face. "What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know." Rin shook his head. "He was feeling ill since the other night but he kept just saying he was tired."

"He's probably just over-worked himself," Sousuke said, even though he sounded like he didn't even believe what he was saying, "Let the first aid guy check him over and then get him on the coach. He's probably just gotten heatstroke or something."

"Then he should've said!" Rin snapped, "God, why did I push him?"

"You can't blame yourself. You're panicking over nothing. Just relax."

Rin ground his teeth together and bowed his head, his shoulders shaking as little as Haru mumbled something unintelligible under his breath. "It's going to be okay, Haru, you hear me? We're gonna get you some help."

Haru just about managed to make sense of what the red-head was saying before he rasped out a soft, " _Rin_ ..." before he blacked out completely


	13. XIII

**XIII**

August was nothing but a blistering heat wave that left Rin reeling and dizzy whenever he stepped back into the cold shade of the house. He was so disorientated on a daily basis and that was just from his morning jogs. Unfortunately, his jogs didn't last too long the last three odd weeks, not since Haru collapsed after the championships and passed out. It had been an awful ordeal; trying to get Haru to wake up and drink as much water as possible.

Nothing seemed to be making the merman feel better. Now that the competition was over and there was no real need for Haru, all the swimming teams had dispersed, more ready than ever to do nothing for a while. Some hardcore teams were going full-on into a new practice regime to prepare for the Olympics scouts. Ordinarily, Rin would have joined them but Haru's ill health made him second-guess himself.

Sousuke opted to as well, seeing as he needed to rest his shoulder and do a full month of physio-therapy. Normally swimming would help strengthen the muscle, but right now all it seemed to do was strain it.

For once, everyone was just eager to relax.

The sun tried to beat down through the large umbrella but the breeze that came from the south banks helped to stop everyone from sweating into puddles of mush. Haru was huddled up on the lounger, wrapped in a pair of baggy shorts that struggled to stay up on his hips, not to mention a pair of large shades propped up on his nose and a large shirt cloaking his torso. He looked like he was shrinking in stature within the folds of fabric. Rin watched him from the edge of the pool, trying his best to ignore the urge to rush over and wait on Haru hand and foot. Not that it would do any good.

He dipped his legs into the water and dropped his head forward, shoulders hunched around his ears.

He'd been on the phone to Gou last night and had somehow managed, after weeks of keeping it all to himself, that he'd had a friend staying with him for the entire summer holiday. She'd squealed and started grilling him about everything there was to know about another human being. Rin couldn't exactly say much so he'd just said the basics; his name was Haru, he didn't have any parents and came from Nanasake. It wasn't strictly a bunch of lies, but it wasn't the whole truth either. Gou, thankfully, hadn't been overly put-off that Haru turned out to be a boy. With such a feminine name, though, he wouldn't have blamed her for the mistake.

It had been one of his longest phone calls with her to date. He learned all about what she'd been up to whilst he'd been too busy or tired to check-in. She's started to learn a lot of German which, as complicated as it was, she claimed to love. Not to mention both their surprise at their mother apparently flirting with older gentlemen on evenings out. Of course it was never more than flirting, maybe a drink or two, but after an hour or two of Gou remaining at her mother's side, the suitors were quickly deterred and left them to it.

Rin had to admit he was amused by the whole thing. His mother had been alone for so long, he'd figured she'd just gotten too used to being independent.

As soon as he put the phone down, though, he was overcome with the loneliness that was suffocating the entire house. The heat didn't help either.

Swiping sweat from his forehead, Rin decided he needed to swim a few lengths, not for the exercise, but more just to feel the soft caress of cool water over each of his muscles. Slipping off the side he let his body sink down to the bottom of the pool, the water lifting all hair and sweat from his body. He was suspended a mere breath from the bottom of the tiled floor. His vision was only slightly blurred as he opened his eyes and glanced around him.

A part of him wanted to know what it was like to be a merman; to drift in the ocean and explore reefs and witness strange creatures that even the discovery channel didn't broadcast.

He almost wished he could breathe underwater ... just so he could relish the coolness rushing down his throat.

There was a muffled crashing sound that sounded completely detached from the watery bubble he was floating in. His heart skipped a little when he watched just how elegant Haru looked as he slid gracefully through the water towards him. In the blue hued world even Haru's cracking skin looked beautiful; like he was made of white-on-white marble, or that the sun was making patterns through the water, permanently etched into his muscles.

Rin reached out and let Haru take his hand, anchoring him lower so that they were settled at the bottom of the pool together. His skin glowed florescent white against the tiles. ' _If only we could communicate telepathically_ ,' Rin mused as he watched the sun create even more patterns on Haru's scarred skin.

Haru turned his head and reached out for Rin's hand. He laced their fingers together and squeezed. Rin squeezed back and felt his stomach flip a little. He didn't need to say any words with Haru. Words were hollow in comparison to the sincere joy he felt being with this strange, exotic little creature that washed up into his life.

A twinge in his lungs started up, so he had to pull free from Haru and push-up. Once he'd taken a gulp of air he descended back into the water, out of the harsh sunlight, and sank down to Haru's level again. He hadn't budged. It was like he could naturally sink like a stone if he desired. Pushing himself down as much as he could, Rin cupped Haru's face in his own and stroked the soft skin, ignoring the pale, raised cracks across his cheeks. He threaded his fingers up into the inky-blue hair and felt heat pool in his stomach when Haru slid up between his legs and wrapped his thin arms around Rin's waist.

His mouth pressing against Rin's made the red-head groan low in his throat, the air wanting to rush out of his lungs. He didn't want to break for air, he'd prefer to stay in the water for as long as possible, having Haru writhe between his legs, his body so tranquil in the water that he was one with the water itself. He was practically weightless.

Breaking for air was becoming far too tedious.

Rin dragged Haru up to the surface in the shaded section of the pool. Taking deep breaths, Rin turned to his companion and watched as water droplets ran down the length of the merman's stoic expression. "Sorry," he gushed. "I ... I can only hold my breath for so long."

"S'okay ..."

Rin ran a hand down his face before swiping his hair out of his eyes. "Do you want to go inside?" he asked. Haru didn't say anything. He simply sank down into the water up to his nose, before gliding back down the length of the pool, drawing closer towards the house. Rin rolled his eyes and followed suit. He climbed out of the pool first, shook water from his hair and bent down to help Haru slither up out of the water.

His legs were still weak and had barely gotten out of the water when he staggered and almost slipped out of Rin's grasp. Both boys were so wet it was like trying to juggle with eels.

Trying not to slide too much, Rin gathered Haru up in his arms and made his way in through the french doors. The house was cool and made the hairs on his arms stand up on end, as he swiped his feet on the towel by the door before crossing the room and gently easing Haru down onto the sofa. He didn't care about the water soaking into the cushions; it was only water after all.

Haru didn't want to let go. His hands were locked behind Rin's head and, despite having been weaker the last week, he seemed to have enough strength to keep Rin fastened in place. His eyes were intense, burning blue, and his lips were pressed together as he stared up at Rin. Why was it suddenly so hard to breathe whenever Haru stared at him? "Haru ..." he breathed.

The merman pulled Rin closer and pressed the softest kiss to Rin's mouth, soaking him up and letting his tongue slip into his waiting mouth. There his stomach went, flipping again! Easing himself up onto the sofa, the redhead let himself settle down between Haru's splayed knees. God, kissing this creature was a symphony of emotions crashing inside him. He didn't care what he was feeling, he just knew he'd never felt that euphoric in his life!

Haru pulled out of the kiss and started coughing, his eyes rolling back into his head as he leaned over the edge of the sofa.

"Shit!" Rin cursed as he rubbed Haru's back. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry!"

Haru took a deep breath and shook his head before collapsing back underneath Rin. He let his fingers trail up the swimmer's tense muscles before hooking his limp wrists over Rin's neck. "Handsome ... Rin ..."

The redhead was torn between blushing and being concerned. In the end he probably did both, but that couldn't be helped. "Do you want me to stop?" he asked softly. Haru simply shook his head. It was hardly the best response but there wasn't much else he could do. Now that they were back on dry land Haru's immune system seemed to me crumbling before his very eyes. "Are you sure you want to stay here? We can move up to the bedroom if you like?"

Haru only nodded.

The bedroom was warm from where it had been bathed in sunlight almost all day. Lying on the cool sheets with Haru lying beside him was such a calming feeling as the sky started to dim to a dull purple outside. Haru had wriggled out of his swimming trunks and kicked them off to one side. He hadn't bothered to redress himself. So Rin, after the initial shock of seeing Haru completely naked for the first proper time, was now lying beside a naked not-quite human creature.

With Haru's leg cocked up to give himself some form of modesty in shielding his privates from Rin's bashful gaze, the swimmer was able to study the human form of the creature in quiet awe; his legs were svelte and the muscles trembled a little in their weakening state. The sun-scars across his body -for that's what they looked like to Rin, sun filtering through the water onto whatever lay beneath -were like a sun spider web. His stomach was slender, his hipbones jutting out a little, and his nipples were small, round and a fine pink colour. His whole body was hairless, save for his head and his eyebrows. He didn't even seem to have armpit hair, which perplexed Rin to no end.

He was so ... _smooth_.

More than once Rin found his fingers aching to test his theory, to see just how smooth Haru really was, but each time he caught himself just before he reached out. Although, he didn't think Haru would mind. Splayed out on his bed, he looked so refined, almost elegant in his simplicity. His hair was drying into a mess of gently curling, inky waves on the stark whiteness of the pillow. His face, tilted towards Rin and the window, caught a glimmer of sun. He glowed a soft gold colour and there was only one word that came to mind when Rin stared at him.

_Beautiful._

Sighing softy, Rin had to admit to himself that he would miss this sense of tranquillity. He almost wished that his mum and sister weren't coming home so soon. He didn't like goodbye's and there was no way a 'goodbye' would ever be worthy of Haru. Especially not everything they'd shared this summer.

"What ... you ... thinking?" Haru's cracked voice whispered.

Rin shook his head, suddenly feeling the effects of long hours in the sun. "Nothing really. Just when my mum and sister will be home. I don't want you to leave but then I don't know how I'm going to explain ... this."

"Easy ..."

"How is it easy? You washed up on my local beach, you can barely walk, how the hell is that going to be easy?" he asked, almost insulted.

Haru gave a weak smile, his eyes slowly closing. "Tell them ... I love you."

Rin felt his heart stutter in his chest. Bowing his head, he slid his fingers around Haru's limp wrist. "It wouldn't explain anything to them."

"It ... it explains ... everything ..."

Oh, how it wished it were that simple! How he craved that any situation could just be summed up in three small words. They carried so much weight and yet ... and yet. He hadn't even said those words to Haru, not properly, and truthfully he wasn't entirely sure if he could declare it with enough intensity to show the creature just how much he meant it. "Do you want to stay? For when my mum and sister come back?" he asked instead.

"Would you ... let me?"

"I wouldn't be asking otherwise," Rin retorted with an eye roll.

Haru hummed softly. "Okay ..." His leg trembled a little more before slipping down over the sheets, unveiling himself completely to Rin. His physique was impressive, not in an overly manly way, but in an elegant, china doll way. He looked so delicate, almost like painted porcelain. Rin just wanted to stare at him for as long as possible.

Reaching over, he placed a quaking hand atop Haru's thigh, his thumb tenderly stroking circles against the cool, soft skin. To suspend themselves in that moment, to have nothing else to care about other than this beautiful creature beside him, Rin could think of nothing more peaceful to his mind. He wanted nothing more than that moment ingrained into his memory for the rest of his life.

Despite his feeble promise, Haru's health deteriorated even further in the coming days.

The August sun burned through every brick of the house, even the shade did little to keep the sweat from their skin. With each morning upon waking up, Rin would stare down at Haru, sweet, still Haru, and watch as this soft creature breathed in the morning air. His thoughts tried to stay away from the hollowness that tried to creep in but there was nothing he could to stop it.

He didn't want Haru to leave him.

He knew that Haru wanted to stay and if there had been even the faintest chance of that happening, he would snatch at it in a heartbeat. Unfortunately, their time was drawing to its end and the only thing Rin would be able to do it cry silently when Haru drifted back out of his life with the tide.

A soft sigh came from the man beside him. Rin swallowed as a tender, scarred hand came up to rest on his face. Haru's sleepy eyes looked up at him. "Rin ... time?" he murmured softly.

Scrambling for his phone, Rin touched on the screen and watched the numbers illuminate. He winced. "It's just gone five," he murmured.

A minute frown creased Haru's forehead. "Early ..."

"I know. I'm sorry I didn't realise," he said.

Haru merely hummed softly before inching a little closer to the coolness of Rin's own body. He always seemed to look so worried in the mornings. Truthfully, mornings were Haru's favourite time of day. There was never any need to rush, to move, to do anything other than breathe. Where the sun wasn't too hot that it burned everything around them, including the air, or hurt his head.

However it did sadden him because it was always in the mornings that Rin looked as though he were on the verge of crying. Haru hadn't seen him cry, and truthfully, he wasn't sure he wanted to. Rin was not a crier. It simply didn't fit his nature. The last couple of mornings Rin hadn't seemed bothered at all by the aspect of Haru sleeping naked within the sheets. He usually blushed like mad, but he seemed to be getting used to it.

Naked was the most natural Haru was able to feel out of water, it was just a shame it had taken him this long to realise it.

He often wanted to ask Rin to sleep naked with him, but somehow he felt like it would be crossing a line Rin was not used to. So, he was content to settle for boxers. For now.

"Rin ..."

"Yes, Haru?"

"Can we ... go ... beach today?"

Rin blinked a little before smiling slowly. He reached up and stroked some hair from where it had slipped into Haru's eyes. "If you like. The sun will be up soon. Are you sure you have enough energy to go?"

"With help ..." Haru gave a small wince and a smile before allowing Rin to gently ease him up into a sitting position. He slowly pulled a sheet across his lap, giving himself some sense of modesty as Rin pulled the blind up. The sun was not yet up, but the earth was lightening regardless. Warmth was already sweeping in over the horizon.

Haru watched as Rin pulled clothes from the dresser and got changed in the weak light, before turning with a few garments in hand for Haru. Dressing in the dawn light was soothing to Haru, in both mind and body, as he felt the soft cotton brush over his sun-scarred skin. Rin adjusted the collar around his neck, before raking his hands through the nest of inky blue hair. Haru couldn't help but smile in spite of his dizziness, as Rin cupped his face and swallowed his mouth in a tender, lingering kiss.

Haru leaned into the touch, the taste of Rin an addiction he never wanted to be rid of.

Raking his fingers through that red bed-hair, to feel the dry warmth under those clothes, having it all right by his side and keeping him safe, protecting him, and comforting him.

A stray tear dripped down his cheek as Rin left for the bathroom.

He didn't want to leave. He had never known such true comfort and love as he had found on this shoreline. He didn't want to leave, he merely wanted to be with Rin. He had nothing to return to in the sea; no mother, no father, no other family nor friends. Just the vast empty blue. It would swallow him whole, trap him within its waves. There was every possibility he would never see Rin again.

He needed to make this time count.

"Ready Haru?" Rin asked as he came back round the doorframe, socks on his feet and a pair of trainers hanging from his hand.

"... Yes."

~0~

The beach was a lovely strip of pale grey sand that stretched on for miles either side of the peer. The roads had been empty so getting there had been effortlessly quick. Haru had been content on the drive over, huddling up against the passenger side window, arms folded under his chin as he watched the pale houses and trees flit by. Rin had been okay with the silence. His brain was still a little foggy from sleep but he was more than grateful for the lack of cars on the road. Having the soft hum of Haru's company beside him had a calming effect on his tired mind.

The gravel had crunched under the car and underfoot as they'd made their way across the shingle and pebble path along towards the pier. The sea had been choppy and a bleak clash of dull greys, greens and browns as they waves churned and frothed in the far distance. Under the pier, however, it was a lot calmer and lapped gently. Rin was pleased, as it meant that there was no salt spray in his hair or clothes.

Haru rested against his side, his head tucked under Rin's chin. The fine hairs curled up into Rin's nose but he didn't mind too much. To have the creature cuddled up to his side, caught between two worlds so distinctly as in that moment, was so heartrendingly poetic that it made Rin want to cry. He could feel Haru aching to dive into the waves, but it was too risky. Already scales were etching up to his knees where they were lazily dipping their feet into the chilled water.

He squeezed Haru's shoulder, pressing him closer.

"Do you wish you could go back home?"

Haru hummed softly in response as he hugged closer to Rin's chest. The sun was just beginning to rise on the precipice of the waves. To watch the gold light glimmer on the tops of those waves was almost soothing. Haru realised Rin was still waiting for a reply. Licking his cracked lips he murmured, "Sometimes ... Miss my tail."

Rin chuckled lightly before dropping a kiss to the dark blue hair. "I sort of miss it too," he confessed.

"But ... like my legs ... too?"

Rin smiled down at Haru's large dark eyes and felt his stomach flip a little bit. "Your legs are very fine indeed, and perfect for swimming."

"Didn't win ..."

"You gave them a chance, which is all that matters," Rin stated firmly. "Do you want to see if you're better at skipping pebbles yet?" he asked after a little while.

Haru gave a dry little smile before nodding and stepping up beside Rin, his bare feet stark white against the old wood of the pier. The planks creaked underfoot as Rin made his way from gathering a handful of pebbles in each pocket of his shorts. It was still too warm to wear a hoodie, despite the early morning nip in the air. By the time they got home it would be too hot to even breathe.

Taking out two smooth stones, Rin positioned Haru sideways, pressed his fingers around the stone before guiding his wrist in a short, sharp flicking motion. The stone was released across the robes, skipping once, twice, three times before sinking.

"Awesome," Rin's breath was warm against his ear. Haru felt his heart thump heavily in his chest. He tried not to whine when he felt the warmth of the swimmer's body ebb away. "Now you try on your own."

With a heavy frown Haru did his best to skip each stone Rin handed him. He didn't know what it was, but his wrist seemed simply too weak to skim the pebbles on his own. Rin was the driving force behind it all, Haru didn't really do anything himself. He was determined to skip a stone at least three times before he became too weak to even hold his head up.

Pressing his lips together, he tried to focus as much as possible. He needed all of his energy to go to his wrist. Biting on his tongue he snapped the last pebble across the current.

It skipped once ... twice ... barely managed a third before disappearing.

"Well done Haru!" Rin grabbed him and spun him around on the edge of the peer in a tight embrace, his legs whirring like a propeller. "That's the best you've done all summer!"

"Thanks ... to you." Haru managed to murmur as Rin settled him down on his feet. Rin pressed a chaste kiss to his mouth before crouching down in front of him, and wrapping Haru's arms around his neck.

"Hold on tight, I'm giving you a ride back to the car."

"R-Rin ..." Haru frowned heavily.

As soon as Rin started to straighten up, Haru quickly hooked his arms around the redhead's neck and held on for his life. Rin linked his weak legs through his arms before adjusting Haru comfortably on his back. Haru gave a light laugh as he held on tightly and enjoyed the ride back to the confines of the car. As much as it made him ache, being torn away from the sea, the scales still etched into his legs, he was more than happy to run away to happiness with Rin.

No matter how little time they had left.


	14. XiV

**XIV**

It started with a cough.

Rin woke up at 2AM to the mattress lurching a little underneath him. From the other side of the bed, Haru was curled up over the edge of the bed, coughing and spluttering onto the wooden floor. His eyes still bleary from sleep, Rin blindly crawled over the hot sheets and smoothed a hand over the creature's heaving back. "Hey ... shh, shh it's okay," he murmured as he rubbed soothing circles against the dry skin. His eyes were desperate to go back to sleep. He almost succumbed until the stench hit his nose. "Ugh ... Haru, what's happened?"

Haru didn't say anything other than choke back a sob.

Rin leaned up so he could peer over Haru's quivering back and blanched a little. Even through the gloom of the night, he could see a shiny puddle of -what he assumed was -vomit. Exhaling softly, he shifted off the end of the bed and went round to Haru's side. He flicked the bedside lamp off and felt his stomach jolt at what was on the floor. The vomit was practically just milk -white and vaguely lumpy -except for the red tendrils spiking through it.

_Blood._

Bending down on his knees, Rin tried to get a closer look but Haru was too busy curling in on himself and shivering, blood and spit drying on his chin. He frowned, wiping Haru's chin with his thumb before standing up. He ducked across the hall towards the bathroom, filled a bucket with some water and a wet cloth before going back to the bedroom. The smell was disgusting as Rin mopped the floor clean, trying his best not to breathe in the odour of fishy vomit. His own stomach churned a little but just as he was sure he was going to start heaving too, the floor was damp and clean.

In the half-light, Rin flushed the vomit down the toilet, rinsed the bucket and washed his hands before stumbling out onto the landing. Bracing himself against the wall, he dropped his head into his hand and groaned. It was far too early to start worrying and yet that's all his brain wanted to do. What could he do? It wasn't like he could call up the emergency services, or even get his local doctor to do a house-call. He was stuck.

A small whimper came through the bedroom door. He couldn't leave Haru in there, writhing in pain. He needed to do something. Unfortunately, all he could offer at the moment was a glass of cold water and some pain killers. It would have to do.

The bathroom tiles were cold underfoot as he stepped inside. The night was barely shifting into dawn outside the window. He poured a glass of water from the tap and popped some pills. The foil crinkled in the deafening silence that pressed around his skull. He rubbed the heel of his hand into his eye socket, desperate to stay awake enough to get back to Haru. He needed to take care of him.

Padding back into the bedroom he set the chalky tablets on the bedside table along with the glass before turning to Haru. He looked like a wreck; his skin was white and looked blistered with even more scars, even his veins were pressing up against his alabaster skin like blue tentacles. A frown permanently marred his forehead. Sweat made his body glow in the lamplight and his sweat-drenched hair was plastered down against his skull. Sitting down beside him, Rin slipped his arms under Haru's armpits and gently eased him up into a sitting position.

"Shh, shh, shh, it's okay," Rin murmured lovingly in his ear as Haru nuzzled weakly against his neck. He let out a soft whimpering sound. Rin reached up and rubbed the nape of Haru's neck to relax him. "Wake up, Guppy. Come on now. I have something that'll make you feel better."

"S ... S ... Sea ... "

Rin shook his head and continued rubbing the damp nape. "Don't worry it'll be okay. You just have to take some tablets." Haru let out another whimper. Something hot dampened Rin's bare shoulder and he grimaced when he noticed that Haru wasn't just shaking from the chill that still hung in the air. He was crying. "Come on now," Rin murmured, his own voice cracking with fatigue and worry. "Don't you start crying when I can barely keep you upright."

"S ... S ... Sorry ..." Haru choked.

Taking hold of the pillows, the redhead somehow managed to awkwardly shift the pillows into a high mound, before easing Haru back against them. It wasn't quite 'upright' but it would have to do for now. He then held the tablets out in his hand and tapped Haru's cracked lips, gently urging him to open his mouth. Once open, he slipped the horrid tablets inside before lifting the glass to his lips. Haru sipped barely enough water to force the pills down before turning his face away.

Rin set the glass back on the table, before heading down the bathroom to get a wet flannel. He ran it under cold water and, as soon as he was back in the bedroom, he pressed it gently to Haru's forehead, watching as cold drops of water ran down his neck. He hummed at the contact, leaning into Rin's touch as the flannel came into contact with his skin. His long, black eyelashes fluttered a little, as if he was teetering on the verge of sleep again.

Easing back, Rin sat there and watched as the creature shifted back and forth a little on the pillow, a thin sheen of sweat still dampening his skin. His lips moved soundlessly as Rin reached out and pressed the back of his hand to the creature's forehead. It was clammy and still damp to the touch.

That was it.

There was no way he could go back to sleep now.

He reached over and tapped his phone screen. It was 4:03AM.

So he did the only thing he could rationally think of doing at that time; he swiped his phone up and went to call Makoto.

~0~

"So ... he has to go back?" Makoto broke the chilled silence about two hours later.

Rin had asked the green-haired man to come over and talk as he had a lot on his mind. Makoto, being the loving guy that he was, barely hesitated before he was padding up the drive-way to Rin's front door. It was probably a combination of having too little sleep and the worry that was gnawing at him, but he was soon confessing the entirety of the summer to his friend. He knew Makoto wouldn't judge -he never judged.

It had all came tumbling out.

Now ... there was nothing left to face but the cold hard truth. They stared out over the sloping roads and the ocean off in the far distance. It was like a rippling black mirror. He didn't want Haru to disappear into that endless darkness. He wanted him to stay. He rubbed a hand down his face and nodded, scratching at the back of his neck. "Yeah ... He needs to go back. Being human is slowly killing him. He coughed up blood just before I called you. Took me two hours to get him settled."

Frowning, Makoto turned a little on the porch step to observe his friend. "When are you going to let him go back? It has to be soon, Rin. He'll die if he stays here."

The word struck a chord within Rin. He didn't want to talk about it. He hated to think about death and sadly this was exactly the closest he was getting to the whole ordeal. Haru meant so much to him that it was difficult to think about a time he wouldn't be around. Everything would feel even emptier. "I ... I don't think I can do it."

"You have to."

"I know!" he stressed in a hiss, flexing his hand as a cold breeze ruffled his hair. "I just ... Can you come with me? To help? I just ... I know that if I'm alone in that car with him, I'm going to turn right back around and bring him back. I'd fill the damn pool with sea water just to keep him here."

Makoto gave a wry smile that quickly vanished. "How come you decided to tell me about it now? Why not two weeks ago? Why not when he collapsed?"

"I guess I didn't want to admit it to myself. I wanted to be in denial for a little while longer," he sighed heavily before dropping his head down against his knees. A cold breeze rippled over his legs and made goose-pimples break out over his skin.

They sat in silence for a while longer. The chilled dawn was just starting to touch the earth, bathing it in a lighter shade of black. Rin could feel his eyes burning with tiredness inside his skull. What he wouldn't give to go and sleep inside the warmth of the house, curl up next to Haru, rest the merman against his chest and comb his fingers through the damp, dark hair.

"Does Sousuke know?"

"Ha!" Rin barked out. "Don't be insane. If you didn't know what makes you think he'd know?"

"Fair point," Makoto let out a loud sigh and leaned back on his elbows. "So when do you think we should do this? Getting him back home, I mean."

"I'd say as soon as possible, but then that would mean starting to load my truck right now, pack food and then make our way to the beach within the next hour."

"Maybe it's for the best," the taller man said. Rin started to protest but he was soon cut off. "Seriously, Rin. If you were in his position, what would you want most in the world?"

Rin stared at his friend for a while. Every molecule in him was screaming 'STAY STAY STAY' but deep in his heart he knew that wasn't true. If he was that ill, he'd want to be back here, in his home, with his mum cooking his soup and his sister watching silly sitcoms on the TV, not caring if he was sick. "To go home," he finally murmured quietly, hoping the giant wouldn't hear him in the still silence. "Where I feel safe."

"So maybe it's time to put Haru's needs first."

Rin closed his eyes and groaned, "Dear God I hate it when you're right."

"It's a gift."

"More like a curse," he grumbled. Glancing down at his watch he gnawed his bottom lip. It was half past four. The dawn was gradually creeping up behind the house, lightning the word like a soft, white mist. With a deep sigh and a cold weight flooding his stomach, he let Makoto drag him up to his feet. He wasn't ready for this. He didn't want to stand up and move, because every step, every twitch would bring him closer to throwing Haru back to the ocean.

He would lose him.

He was being so selfish and he couldn't help it.

_I love him._

The realisation struck him as he was stepping through the front door. It made a lump form in his throat and he almost choked on his tongue. He was holding onto the door frame to keep his balance and almost ripped the wood to shreds with his fingernails. He brow was furrowed so deeply he almost split his skull in half. He was in love with a creature that most definitely should not exist. A creature that was slowly dying in his bedroom upstairs.

"Rin?" Makoto frowned at the bottom of the stairs. "Are you coming?"

Shaking his head the redhead nodded, "Yeah -I'll go and get Haru. You sort out the food."

Makoto watched him a moment before nodding his head and moving silently into the kitchen. Rin exhaled a little before staring up the stairs. They seemed to stretch on forever. The carpet muted his footsteps as he climbed. The air inside the house was as cool as it was outside, the pale dawn slipping in through the closed blinds, slowly bringing vague shapes into focus. Outside his bedroom he paused, hand clenched tightly around the cold doorknob. Something was stopping him from turning it. Haru was on the other side of the door, sleeping fitfully. He could sense the merman's distress -yet he was powerless to go inside and ease his worries.

A soft whimper snapped him out of his thoughts.

He forced the door all the way open and hurried over to Haru, the mattress sinking under his weight. For a moment he just watched the merman for a few moments, the room lightening a little. Haru had stopped sweating, wasn't frowning as much but was definitely still in pain; his lips were still cracked and had a smudge of dried blood in the corner.

"Haru?" he whispered, tenderly touching the merman's shoulder. He shook him lightly. "Come on, Haru, it's time to wake up."

"Mmm ... why?" he croaked, frowning against the light.

"We're going to the beach," Rin tried to keep his voice light, like he was suggesting a regular trip along the coast before school. Haru was struggling to find the effort to wake up. Stroking his hand down Haru's cheek, Rin stood up and got out some clothes before heading back to the bed. As he tried to imprint everything about the moment into his mind, he looped Haru's arms around his neck before easing the creature into a sitting position. He eased Haru's stiff legs over the edge of the bed, wincing as his feet thumped on the floor.

"Ri-i-n!" Haru whimpered loudly as his head lulled onto his chest. Rin knelt down on the hard floor and tried to remain calm as he eased each of the scaled, scarred feet into a pair of loose bottoms.

"I know, I know," he soothed as he stroked his hands up and over Haru's pale, shivering thighs. "It'll be okay. Trust me."

Haru's fingers dug into the mattress as Rin dressed him. He didn't bother with socks, underwear or a t-shirt. Just a hoodie and tracksuit bottoms. "Rin ..." Haru breathed.

"Shh, shh, don't say anything." ' _Please don't say anything!_ ' he begged in his mind, ' _Please don't make this any harder than it has to be!_ '

He drew in a deep breath and then crouched down, his hands smoothing over Haru's covered thighs. The slim, pale hands held onto his shoulders for support. Rin held his gaze firmly and mentally counted to three. Haru barely flinched when Rin stood up, whipping his legs out from underneath him and helped him wrap the thin legs around his waist. Rin's muscles strained a little as Haru was practically a dead weight in his arms. Wrapping his arms securely under Haru's pert arse, he coaxed the creature's head into the crook of his neck. As soon as he did that, Haru tightened his grip around the swimmer's neck and nuzzled him.

He finally felt safe.

As Rin slowly descended the stairs, he heard Haru whisper in his ear; "Rin? ... Where are ... we going?"

Grinding his back teeth he replied, "Somewhere you've needed to be for a while."

"... Rin?"

"Yes?"

"... Stay?"

Tears pricked behind his eyes. "I'll stay until it's over. I promise."

~0~

The drive down to the beach disappeared with the last dregs of the night light.

The sky was now a soft, misty blue with a glimmer of pink shimmering beneath the clouds. The sun would soon be rising as Makoto parked the car, Rin cradling Haru in his lap in the passenger seat. He was so grateful that the foot-wells were so deep.

Gravel crunched under the tyres before Makoto turned the engine off and unfastened his belt. Turning to Rin, he frowned. "Are you ready to go now?" he asked softly.

Rin looked up at him with a broken expression. His eyes were red-veined and his hair greasy from sweat and lack of sleep. The salt-air wouldn't help matters. "I ... can we have a minute?"

"Course you can, mate."

Ever the gentleman, Makoto opened the driver side door and stepped out into the chilled morning air.

Now that they were alone, Rin couldn't find the words for all the things he wanted to say. He needed to say so many things and yet ... there was a hole in his heart, growing larger with each passing second -encompassing everything he felt and treasured inside him. It was a black hole, swallowing everything up inside, leaving nothing behind but a hollow shell.

As tears ran down his cheeks, he cradled Haru's limp body tightly, and sobbed into the soft neck. He didn't care that snot was running over his mouth, or that his eyes were so raw, all he cared about was feeling the weight of Haru in his arms, memorising it and trying so damned hard to prolong the inevitable.

His watch bleeped at 6AM.

He couldn't ignore it any longer.

Opening his door, he called for Makoto to come and help him get Haru out. They were all so groggy and tired, Haru barely conscious between them. With an arm looped over both men's shoulders they hobbled over the pebbled path towards the small row boats along the pier. Rin held Haru close as Makoto unwound the tethered boat and steered it along towards the end of the pier. Holding onto a pillar, he eased himself into the boat and settled down in the bough.

With awkward movements and a lot of upper body strength, both men managed to get Haru into the boat. It didn't rock too much, the water calmly lapping beneath them. Makoto had to hold him upright, his head drooping on his chest as Rin tried to step down into the boat with some form of grace and not end up in the sea.

Once they'd settled down, Rin and Haru lying down with their legs under the seat, resting against the back, Makoto took an oar in each hand, gritted his teeth and rowed.

The further they got out to the sea, the more Rin felt the waves rolling underneath them. They swelled and crashed against the side of the boat, rocking it up and down more and more violently. The salty spray stung his burning eyes, but he did the only thing he could: he screwed his face up and nuzzled his head closer against Haru's, his heart aching as the creature nuzzled closer under his chin, his fingers clawing into Rin's hoodie.

As the spray hissed over Haru's skin, Rin noticed that the scars on the pearly flesh were slowly smoothing out. The scabbed over gills on Haru's neck were lightening in colour, the gills pressing against the thin layer of skin, trying to split it open. His ragged breathing seemed to ease up a little too. He stirred more, turning his face up toward the sky, a faint smile tinging his lips as the sea water sprayed over his features.

Makoto grunted a little and pulled the oars in.

Rin blinked out of his dazed state and looked up, "Are you okay?" he asked, his voice thick with sleep.

The tall man nodded. "Just exhausted. I think we're far enough out anyway," he mused as he looked around him. The boat continued to bob over each wave. Rin tried to think about it. He felt physically sick enough already.

They looked at one another across the boat. Rin felt his eyes burn with tears and sea water. It was time. Hugging Haru close, he pressed a wet kiss to the merman's forehead. Haru's eyelids fluttered open and he grasped Rin's wrist. "R-Rin ..." he murmured, his eyes so clear for the first time in weeks. He was no longer dazed with fatigue and lack of food. Easing himself up into a sitting position against the redhead's chest, he cupped his taut jaw and pressed a soft, trembling kiss to Rin's mouth. "My Rin ..."

Rin's mouth trembled as he gripped Haru's hand on his jaw tightly. He bit his lip and tried to fight back the tears as Haru stood up on shaking legs in the middle of the boat. He unzipped the hoodie, the noise drowned out by the angry hush of the waves around them. A sea-gull cawed somewhere in the far distance. Stepping out of the tracksuit bottoms, Haru gave Rin one last, mournful look that said everything neither could put into words.

_I don't want to go._

_Stay with me._

_I love you._

With one foot propped on the rim of the boat, Haru arched his arms over his head and propelled himself off into the grey water. Rin sat upright, watching as the sea foamed and frothed. There was no sign of Haru. He swallowed thickly, almost splintering the boat under his tense grip. Please, God, he needed a sign to show that he'd made the right choice.

As if on cue, a large ethereal creature shot out of the water and arced over the boat, the silvery blue tail shining in the pale sunlight, water rushing off over the scales and pearly muscles. Rin watched, in slow motion, as Haru -in full, beautiful merman form -crashed back into the dark sea and disappeared under the waves.

He didn't know how long they sat in the boat, staring at the spot where Haru had disappeared into.

Makoto was the first to speak. "You know ... for some reason, I suspected a small part of you was lying." Rin looked over at him, his expression torn between anguish and contempt. "Now that I've seen him ... just ... wow."

Rin turned to look back out over the ocean. The sun was now fully up, making the water gleam a dark green with gold rippling over the waves. He felt so empty. His chest ached so painfully, it was too hard to breathe, to think, to process that he'd just willing thrown love away.

Makoto seemed to read his thoughts as he reached out and squeezed the redhead's shoulder. "Hey now, I know it's not want you want to hear, but ... well ... there are plenty more fish in the sea."

Rin shook his head, his head now completely blank as he stared out into nothingness. "Yeah," he sighed, "but there's only one Haru."

Makoto said he'd row them back to the shore. Rin was too mentally and physically shattered to even hold his head up anymore. It was as though his soul and happiness had sank to the bottom of the ocean, disappearing in the blink of an eye just as Haru had. It didn't need any explaining. Makoto wasn't immune to the things around him. He rubbed life back into his hands before steering the boat around -not that it needed much help thanks to the waves rocking them about -and starting heading back to shore.

They didn't speak the whole return trip.

Rin couldn't face driving so his friend did it for him. Makoto was such a wonderful man. Sousuke was lucky to have him in his life -they all were.

At his front door, Rin couldn't lift his face long enough to look up at the green-haired man. "I ... you won't tell anyone will you?" he asked, his voice cracked from exhaustion and heartache. He was so _empty_ inside.

Makoto have a small smile before shaking his head, "No. I am here, if you want to talk though."

"Thanks," Rin bowed his head and rubbed his eyes. God, they felt so dry and scratchy. "For ... everything."

Makoto smiled, "It's okay. Go and get some sleep."

As soon as the front door was closed, the thick sense of emptiness smothered him like a black duvet. It wove its way into his lungs and made him choke on nothing. His legs felt like lead as he dragged himself up the stairs. Everything around him was the same and yet -something was off. Something had shifted. The loneliness was maddening as he stood in the doorway of his bedroom.

The sheets were still rumpled from where they'd slept just a few hours ago.

A sob broke free at long last. It rang out low and mournful in the early morning stillness. He braced himself against the door and pressed his hand to his mouth. He wiped at his face but his eyes were too weak to obey the command to stop crying. Silent tears and soft sobs hummed in the air as he toed his shoes off and crawled over the bed. He didn't bother getting under the covers or taking his clothes off.

The other pillow still smelled of Haru.

Burying his nose into it, he drew in a deep lungful of air and trembled as more tears dribbled down his cheeks. His body quaked with every sob as he curled up on his side, Haru's pillow tucked into him. He could smell salt water on his cuffs and feel the grittiness of salt and sand over his skin but he couldn't bring himself to care. If he showered, it would all disappear forever; the smell, the memories, the feel of Haru's lips. It would all be gone.

For now, this was all he had; scents, sea water and memories.

He was suspending himself into an infinite haze where he still had Haru tucked up to his side, on the verge of waking, ready to kiss and start a new day. He let sleep claw him down into the comfort of darkness. It flooded through his mind, like ink, and dyed his world black.

The alternative, after all, would destroy him.


	15. XV

**XV**

Haru was gone.

The emptiness his presence left was unmistakable in day-to-day life.

He was thankful that school had ended weeks ago and there was no training left, because getting out of bed in the mornings was proving just too difficult. Even Makoto couldn't rouse him, not even when he had the whole gang outside the front door and calling his name through the letterbox.

He simply curled up under the covers, despite the heat, and slept on.

Ten days later he was woken by the soft sounds of movement downstairs. He grumbled to himself before burrowing under his pillow. The air was cooler. It must have been sometime in the evening, maybe even late at night. The house seemed a little louder, as though he wasn't the only one in there. The soft hush of socks on the floorboards made the hairs on his arms prickle. His mind was still foggy as he rubbed the heel of his hand into his eyes, trying to refocus. He let out a long, heavy sigh, as though the weight of the world pressed down on his chest and crushing his lungs.

Waking up was too upsetting. There was no reason to get out of bed anymore. He hadn't eaten in days and still didn't feel hungry. He barely had the energy to blink his eyes let alone roll to the edge of the bed.

A stair creaked down the hallway.

Rin was lying on his back in the gloom when his door handle turned. The door opened like a vaccuum; flooding the room with cleaner, fresher air. He didn't need to turn his head to know who it was; the faint scent that caught his attention as well as the twang of familiarity rushed through him and made his breath hitch.

"Rin?" His mother's voice had never sounded so calming before. After weeks of listening to it as a tinny echo through a phone, he was so grateful for the real thing. He squeezed his eyes shut and felt days of pent-up tears brimming to the surface. "Oh Rin!" There were no words needed. His mother knew when something was wrong. He felt the mattress dip under her weight and the warmth of her hands as she touched his arms and tried to lift him up into a hug.

He sniffed loudly as he buried his nose against her shoulder. He had missed this! He'd missed the comfort she offered, even when she didn't say a single thing. It was simply like she _knew_ how to help just by being there.

"Tell me what's wrong, sweetheart," she crooned into his hair, her body slowly rocking back and forth.

"Can't ..." he choked out. He clutched her tighter.

There was only so much she could do for him. She held him close and stroked her fingers through his dark red hair. It was greasy to the touch; he clearly hadn't washed in days. Drawing in a deep breath, she leaned back on the bed and fixed her baby boy with a firm, loving gaze. She cupped his face and the expression he wore broke her heart. Pressing her lips together she took in Rin's drooping trembling lips, downcast eyes and the damp red nose. "Rin, love, tell me what's happened? You sounded so happy on the phone," she faltered a little as a tear smeared under his lashes. "What happened to your little friend?" she asked softly when it was clear that Rin wasn't going to answer.

"He ..." Rin swallowed past the lump in his throat, trying and failing to keep the tremor out of his voice. "H-Had to go ..."

"It's not the end of the world," she said. "He can always come back and visit. I don't mind. Your bed is more than big enough for two."

A sob cracked through the room. Rin leaned away and wiped at his dry cheeks. God, almost two weeks later and he still wasn't able to cry. He felt the tears, felt their wetness, but they never dropped lower than a smear under his eyes. Blowing out a sigh, his shoulders sagged and he dropped his chin to his chest. "He can't come back, mum. Ever."

There was no room for argument on the matter. She looked at him with a careful expression. He clearly didn't want to talk and there was no way for her to get any information out of him. Least of all so late at night. Stroking his stringy hair out of his face she tilted his chin up. "Don't let it bother you tonight, sweetheart. Try and get some proper rest and tomorrow I'll cook you a nice breakfast."

Rin didn't know what it was about that promise that made him feel better, but it did. He hugged her closer, absorbing her warmth and her adoration in one, deep breath. Loosening his hold on her, Rin settled back down on the pillows and watched as his mother was illuminated by the faint light peeking through his blinds; her long greying hair was pulled back in a low pony-tail at the nape of her neck -clearly she'd been too tired to style it for the flight back -and the slight bags under her eyes.

She still looked better than him, though.

She tucked him into bed like he was nine-years-old; she kissed his forehead and let her fingertips linger on his hand before she stood up off the bed and made for the door. Just as she stepped through, she turned back to look at her son, snuggled up in bed with a weary expression on his face. "Sleep now, darling. I'll wake you in the morning." With that said, she closed the door with a soft 'click'.

The last thing Rin heard was the soft padding of her slippers as she made her way down the landing towards her own bedroom.

The following morning Rin was still fast asleep when his bedroom door creaked open. He barely registered the last half of her words before she dropped down on his bed. He grunted and rolled his eyes as she shuffled under the duvet and nudged her nose against his. He nuzzled lower under his pillow and sighed heavily, his body still too exhausted to deal with the world beyond his comforter.

"Mum wants to know if you're coming down for breakfast?" Gou murmured, her voice so sweet and familiar to his ears.

Rin sighed and shook his head. "No ... I'm far too tired."

Through cracked eyelids, he saw that her face scrunched up into a frown. She was clearly debating on her next move. "Well ... can you come down anyway?" She nudged his foot with her toe. She was cool from walking around outside. "Mum made your favourite breakfast."

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"Please?" She slid her hand out over the covers and touched his hand. "Just ... for a little bit? I'll make you some tea."

The urge to hide away forever was almost too appealing, but then he had missed it when his little sister made him tea. Just the way she made it with a blob of honey always soothed him. Maybe it was worth crawling out for? He hadn't eaten in days ... the very thought of food made him feel sick. He didn't know if he was even going to be able to cope with tea, but he didn't want to see the look of Gou's disappointed face all day.

"Okay," he finally grumbled. "Let me get dressed and I'll be down."

"If you're not down in ten minutes I'm dragging you down whether you like it or not," she stated with renewed energy. She wriggled out from under his duvet before giving him an encouraging pat on the thigh. He felt the mattress shift as Gou moved off his bed and left.

The room felt empty once she'd gone.

Tossing the covers off his head, Rin stared up blankly at the ceiling. The sun poured in through his half-closed blinds and warmed him through his covers. Raking a hand through his hair, he grimaced at how greasy it was. He definitely needed to shower after he ate. For now, a hoodie would have to do.

Crawling out of his bed he dragged himself over to the chest-of-drawers, digging around with heavy fingers for something to wear. He didn't want to wear the hoodie Haru had last worn. It was still tucked underneath his pillow, barely smelling of him or even sea-water anymore. Now it just smelt musty and in desperate need of a wash. Finally, he tugged a light grey one out from the bottom and pulled it on over his head. The hood got caught but he didn't care; his hair was a mess and he probably had bags under his eyes. The hood could hide some of that at least.

Trudging down the stairs he felt like he no time had gone by; everything was still the same in their morning routine and yet he felt so out of place to be joining them. He'd experienced too much. Then again, his mum and sister could probably argue the same, seeing as they travelled around Europe and all he'd done was train and fall in love.

No biggie.

Giving his muscles a quick stretch he sighed before making his way out of his room and down the stairs. His mum looked up as he edged through the large walkway. She gave him a smile. Gou whipped around, her sleek red hair fanning around her. She smiled even brighter than their mum. "I'm glad you came down," his mum said as he settled down in the vacant chair. "Would you like some tea?"

Before Rin could answer, Gou piped up, "It's okay mum, I said I'd make it for him."

"I'm not an invalid!" he snapped, more to himself than to them.

"Oh stop being grumpy!" Gou said as she stood up and went over to the counter. Rin shrank inside his hood as he listened to the too-loud noises of Gou taking a mug out of the cupboard and putting the kettle on. Everything was too loud; it was like being at a concert right underneath the speakers. He was almost certain she was trying to make him deaf. Grinding his teeth together, he was just about to snap when she set the mug down in front of him. Softly. "There you go, drink up. You'll feel better in no time."

He didn't drink it right away; instead he wrapped his hands around the mug and let his palms burn. It felt good to feel something again. The first sip was bittersweet but warmed his insides instantly. The second sip was like liquid heaven as it rushed through his system. With each sip, Rin became more alert, even managing to force down a few pieces of toast and jam whilst Gou showed him printed photos of their holiday and his mum chattered away about how much attention they both got. His mouth smiled but his heart wasn't completely in it.

Part of his heart was at the bottom of the ocean, lost at sea, never to return.

Later that afternoon, whilst Gou was in her room on a Skype chat with one of her new friends, Rin and his mum were sitting outside in the late sunlight, sipping at iced tea and relaxing on the loungers. The pool would need to be drained down soon, but for now it was calming to have the coolness blow against him from the breeze.

"So, tell me, how was your summer?" his mum asked as she turned her face towards him. Half her face was swallowed up by her large sunglasses.

"It was fine; I studied, trained, came first in the Nationals and ... well you know about Haru." He shrugged it off dismissively.

"I know a bit about this Haru." She quirked an eyebrow. "I want you to actually talk about him, Rin. Keeping it bottled up won't do you any favours."

"I don't want to."

"I didn't ask what you wanted," she said, turning her face back toward the sun.

Rin pursed his lips and cast his gaze back to the sky. On the one hand he wanted to chew her out for being so damned nosy. On the other hand, he really was aching to let it all out. The only problem was that ... it was just too hard. "He was ..." he stopped. Why was it so hard just to say how he felt? How they were together? Maybe he felt a little awkward discussing it with his mum. Closing his eyes behind his own sunglasses, he sighed softly before tuning out the rest of the world. "He was quiet, barely spoke half the time. Didn't really like to go out much but when we did we always had fun. He got on with my friends well enough. Even raced on Makoto's team in the Nationals. He helped them come second to us, by a few seconds."

His mum stayed quiet, taking it all in.

Rin fiddled with the ties of his shorts. "He ... He was sweet. Didn't have any family to go back to. Just a school, really. We didn't really talk about the future, he only really loved to swim. I ... don't think he knew what he wanted to do after." He trailed off, absently aware that his eyes were damp again. "We used to go jogging up along the beach first thing in the morning. I'd take him on the pier and teach him to skip stones. He got quite ill just before you and Gou came back. I had to ... arrange for him to get home. Makoto helped me. I had to carry him on my back most places in the last week or so. He was barely able to get out of bed the day he went home."

"I'm so sorry you had to deal with everything on your own," his mum finally said as she reached over and took his hand in her own. Her palm was cold from where she'd held her drink, but it was soothing all the same. He squeezed back, feeling unusually emotional as his sobs bubbled in his chest. He wasn't about to cry. Sensing that he didn't want to talk anymore, his mum leaned over and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "It's okay," she said. "Let's just enjoy the sun and then we can think about dinner."

"Okay," Rin sniffed, cuffing his nose on his wrist. "Sounds good."

~0~

The last few days of summer started to melt away, giving way to cooler winds, earlier evenings and lamplights that flickered on before school had ended for the day. With each passing day Rin couldn't deny that he had moved on with life as much as he could. There was still no one around him that interested him romantically. He'd gone along to the two times Makoto and Sousuke had tried to set him up with someone, one a girl and the other a guy, but he'd ended the evening early, driving them home and left without an exchange of numbers or a goodnight kiss.

He wasn't a dater, he never had been.

As September was drawing to a close, Rin woke up one morning feeling restless. He tossed and turned in his bed as the sun slowly rose on the other side of his blinds, trying to figure out why he couldn't sleep. He hadn't eaten right before bed, he hadn't stayed up late and he hadn't been playing games on his phone until the unholy hours of the morning. So what was the problem?

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes he clawed his phone out from under his pillow and flicked through his alarms to see if one was due to go off. None were set. That was odd; he usually had one set every day even when he wasn't studying. So how come none were set? That's when it clicked.

He hadn't been jogging in over a month.

Not since Haru had left.

Chewing on his lip, he drummed a random tune on his chest. Did he want to go back there? Maybe he didn't need to go right up to the pier? Maybe just up along the road; he didn't actually need to set foot on the beach itself. The more he thought about it, the more his fingers itched to reach for his jogging bottoms, the more his feet wanted to pound along the tarmac, music in his ears and the vague suggestion of seagulls cawing in the distance.

"Fine," he sighed to himself and pushed himself upright. Swinging his legs over the end of the bed he combed his hair into submission before gathering his essentials, draping them over his arm and heading to the bathroom down the hall. He changed in the dawn light and folded his pyjamas up on the toilet seat. His eyes still felt a little raw, but he didn't care. He'd spent too much time sleeping the rest of the summer away. Eventually even his friends had stopped trying to contact him, figuring that if he wanted to, he'd call them.

As he brushed his teeth Rin couldn't help but think that he'd over-reacted to a lot of what had happened. Logically, on paper, it had been a summer crush, a fling, nothing to cry over. He also had that added security that he'd never had to bump into Haru down the shops or at college. Then again, he'd never see Haru again; not in the supermarket, not by the pool, not even at any of the local restaurants.

Bracing himself over the cold sink, Rin glanced up at his reflection. He had lost a fair bit of weight in the last couple of weeks. It still felt tricky to eat, almost all food having the consistency of cardboard. Except Mackerel. Ironically, he was actually liking the damned fish. Other than that, though, he had definitely lost some weight, especially on his cheeks. Rubbing a hand over his jaw, he spat the last of the minty foam down the drain, rinsed the sink and then ducked out of the bathroom.

Tip-toeing, Rin took the stairs two at a time before stuffing his feet into his trainers. Once the laces were tied, he grabbed his keys off the side and slipped out of the door.

The cool morning air hit him like a an ice cube running down his spine. His muscles tensed up instantly. Plugging his earphones in and turning the volume up on his iPod, Rin stretched his muscles out, slowly warming himself up, before leisurely jogging down the driveway and out onto the main road.

The skies were still a soft grey colour, with strobes of misty blue light shining through. It was going to be a lovely day, when the clouds finally drifted off Southwards. That would be good. He could take Gou out for a drive and then maybe to the cinema. They hadn't had a night like that for months. Maybe they could even grab a take-away for them and mum on the way back home? It would be a nice change of pace and stop her from cooking so late at night.

Before he realised it, he came to a stop beside the railing that led down the concrete steps toward the pebbled beach.

His stomach dropped into his shoes.

' _Where did the time go?_ ' he wondered as he wrapped his hands around the metal piping. It was frozen. The touch burned through his skin. Swallowing thickly, he could feel the sweat soaking into his clothes as he stared down at the pebble dunes stretched out before him, reaching all the way down to the waves as they crashed against the shoreline. Biting down on his lip, he gripped the railing tighter. The sea was beckoning him closer, almost like it was calling out to him.

Drawing in a deep breath that soothed his lungs, Rin took his first step down onto the concrete staircase.

He let his feet carry him down and didn't fully realise what was happening until he heard the crunch of pebbles shifting under his trainers. His eyes wondered over to the pier and he suddenly felt nauseated. No, the pier was definitely a bad idea. Having spent many an afternoon skipping rocks with Haru, the mere smell of weather-worn wood would bring back difficult memories.

Swallowing past the lump in his throat, he clenched his fists tightly and making him way left, towards the rocky caves etched into the sides of the low cliffs. He had only one memory of Haru in that cave, and it hadn't exactly been the friendliest of encounters. His heart still lurched at the memory of pinning Haru down, all eighty odd pounds of raw, writhing merman, thrashing and lashing out in his frenzy to return to the sea. Now as he stepped through into the cave, the pale light barely illuminating the worn edges, he couldn't help but wish for the violence. At least it'd be better than the harrowing emptiness in his chest.

The soft hush of the waves frothing against the pebbled floor by his feet made him shiver.

The cave's usual path wound around a narrow ledge and opened out to a perfect view of an endless, unspoiled ocean. So perfectly blue and grey, churning and frothing in the early morning light, it was refreshing to his mind. He inhaled the salty air deeply, feeling as though the cobwebs were being blown out of his mind. His fingers twitched in his pockets as he turned his iPod off. The sudden near-silence was jarring. Frowning, he toed his trainers off as well as his socks before settling down on a smooth patch of sand. Stretching his legs out, he braced himself for the shock.

The water was freezing cold!

He let out a quiet grunt as he rolled up his jogging bottoms and dropped his legs down into the water, leaning back on his hands and dropped his head back; it felt so good to be back here, soaking the in the sea and the sea air. It was all so calming and natural. He had missed it so much.

"I miss you, Haru."

It was the first time he'd said it out loud in over six weeks. He knew the merman would never hear those words. Hell, he'd probably disintegrated into nothing more than sea-foam and dregs of salt, just like in the fairy tale. Maybe the entire summer had been nothing but a strange, elongated fantasy he'd concocted for himself. Why, exactly, he couldn't figure out but that was beside the point.

A buzzing at the back of his head was starting up. He was still so tired. The jog had clearly been a mistake. Clawing his hands through his hair he wriggled his toes, imagining little sucker fish swarming around them. His shins quivered a little in the water as it gently lapped up over his knees. His feet barely skimmed the pebbles at the bottom of the little lagoon that stretched out into the ocean.

Another breeze rippled over his skin.

He looked at the curved dome of the cave, covered in short, brown stalactites that hovered nearer the back. They twinkled in the rays of light filtering in through the cave's mouth. It was tranquil and helped Rin to keep his mind blank. He was so sick of worrying, of wondering and figuring out what he needed to do next. He only had a week or doing nothing left, before he'd start studying for his degree. He had opted to study Physical Education and an introductory course in marine biology. He'd probably drop it after the first year, but he was curious to know something more about the world under the waves.

Suspended in his daydreams with his head tipped back, he was only vaguely aware of something cold and slippery wrapping around his ankle until it was too late. Suddenly it tightened and yanked him. The sharp stones dug into his thighs as he was tugged off the ledge. He yelped and kicked out, trying to loosen whatever had grabbed him. Digging his elbows into the ledge he tried to haul himself back out of the water completely to no avail.

"Get the fuck off!" he cursed out as he continued to kick out, his nails digging into the damp sand, trying to drag himself free. With one final tug, he was able to propel himself out of the water, and roll through the grit. It clung to him like an itchy second skin, as he collapsed onto his back and panted heavily. He could feel the sand and grit itching all over his skin. The urge to douse himself in water to rinse some of it off was over-whelming but there was no way he was going back in the pool.

Drawing in deep breaths he tried to calm himself down.

Nothing sounded around him except the hissing of the waves against the rocky ledge.

The water was still aggravated by whatever was in there. His stomach lurched at the thought. What if that creature -whatever it was -decided to launch itself out of the thought at him? Seeing as how it tried to drag him under it clearly wasn't a docile animal.

" _Rin?_ "

The world froze.

No, it couldn't be ... Could it?

Turning his head in the gritty sand, Rin looked out over toward the cave's mouth. The sunlight glimmered on the water around a rock. No, it wasn't a rock; it was a head of sleek, inky blue hair. His stomach knotted multiple times and his heart swelled inside his throat. He choked on air, not daring to believe his eyes. Haru's head was bobbing just above the waves, his stoic expression ruined by the slight crease between his eyebrows.

"H-Haru?" he let out a wet breath. He blinked and rubbed his eyes a couple of times but when he looked back out over the green and gold water the merman was still there. "Haru!"

Without a second thought, Rin stood up and clumsily jumped into the water, moving as fast as he could before he grabbed Haru in his arms and pressed their mouths together. God, it had been so long since he could do something so natural! He felt hot tears running down his cheeks, but for once they were happy tears. They mixed with the sea water splashing up against his skin as Haru clung to his neck, kissing him just as fiercely and wrapped his legs around him.

 _Legs_?

Rin broke the kiss and blinked in surprise. Running his hands down from Haru's waist he felt two muscular thighs, two knees and two firm shins. Where was the tail? His frown must have been obvious as Haru bent down and took Rin's hands in his own. "Come on," he murmured as he drifted closer to the ledge and climbed out of the water. Rin tried not to blush as he saw that Haru was naked. The sun gleamed on his pert arse like they were two pearls. Rin followed and climbed out of the cold water, wincing a little as some of the sharper rocks pinched at his skin.

His nose was running thanks to the sea water. He cuffed it on the sleeve of his hoodie before unzipping it and taking it off. His iPod dropped out of his pocket and he grimaced. He'd need to buy a new one. He cursed himself for being an idiot but looking up at Haru, hunched over and shivering a little, he couldn't be mad. Taking the hoodie he slipped it over the smaller man's arms before turning him around and doing the zip up to his chin. "There you go, you'll warm up in no time," he joked as he pulled the soaked hood up over Haru's helmet of blue hair. It felt so weird joking with Haru so easily after all this time. Glancing down, he flushed as he saw Haru still bare from the waist down.

He made short work of peeling off his jogging bottoms and then giving his underwear to Haru. Luckily they were plain blue boxer shorts. Rin awkwardly pulled his bottoms back on and just stood there for a moment drinking everything in; from the salt water running over Haru's neck and collarbones to the way he hopped on one foot trying to regain the use of his legs.

Finally he found his voice.

"How ... How are you literally standing here right now?" he asked.

Haru glanced up at him, his dark blue eyes making Rin twitch with want. "Let's walk," Haru managed without the strain or stutter Rin was used to. Maybe it had been a defect the last time? Who knew?

They walked around the edge of the cave and worked their way until they were outside on the pebbled shore. The stones clicked and clacked underfoot as they made their back toward the direction of the pier. Rin had to keep pinching himself through his pocket. He was still convinced he was currently drowning in the pool inside the cave but had banged his head on a rock at some point and was now experiencing a beautiful dream.

The sun was climbing higher in the sky and was warming the earth below. The early morning mist had dissipated and the bleached pier planks creaked softly underfoot as they walked down to the very end before sitting down and dangling their legs down. The pier was high enough that they could skim their feet against the glossy green surface without getting wet -not that that was a concern for either of them in that moment.

Rin was glad the sun would dry his hair at least and maybe dry their clothes enough as that they were extremely damp, creaking things that itched.

Drawing in a deep breath, he turned to Haru. "So," he said. "How ... is this even possible?"

Haru's mouth twitched at the corner as he swung his legs back and forth. He looked like a child admiring everything for the first time. "I made a deal with the King ... when I returned."

"The King?" Rin frowned. He really didn't know anything about Haru's home-life.

"Yes ..." he hedged. "He ... wasn't pleased ... that I'd made contact with ... humans."

Ah, there was the vague stutter. As silly as it was, Rin had missed it. "So, what was the deal?"

"I had a choice ... of punishment," Haru said as he brushed his wet hair out of his eyes. "Banishment and never return ... Have my fins stripped ... So I'd not be able to swim ..."

"Or ...?" Rin urged.

"Turn me to ... sea-foam."

"Sea-foam?" Rin frowned and then chuckled, "Oh God, I thought that was only a myth?"

"Myths come from ... real stuff," Haru managed with a wry smile. "Details aren't ... always right though."

Rin snorted to himself and shook his head as he leaned back on his arms. "Wow," he murmured, looking out at the horizon. "So this is what you chose?"

Haru nodded. "I chose banishment ..." he said. "Though ... They did strip my fins beforehand." He lifted a leg up and flashed the pearly skin at Rin. A long, puckered pink scar run from his knee to his ankle.

"Shit!" Rin hissed, taking Haru's leg in his hands and smoothing his thumb of the scar. "Did it hurt?"

"A bit."

"It looks painful," he worried.

"Don't need them ... anymore," Haru said placing his hand over Rin's and sliding it off before dropping his leg down.

"Can you ... still swim?" Rin asked.

"I got here ... didn't I?" he said, quirking an eyebrow.

Rin couldn't help but look down at the scar. It was razor thin and the scar tissue probably made it look worse than it actually was. At least now it would be more believable that Haru was in an accident. "I'm sorry," he murmured as he rubbed a hand down his face, wincing as the grit and sand ground into his pores. "It just really does look painful."

"I made my choice." Haru shrugged before leaning over and resting his head on Rin's shoulder. "The scars will heal. Broken hearts ... rarely do."

"Getting over you was one of the hardest things I ever had to do," Rin confessed after a few moment of just listening to the waves and the soft hush of Haru's breathing against his neck. "To be honest I barely managed. I don't think I could stomach doing it again."

Haru leaned even closer, scooting over the planks and looping an arm through Rin's own. "You won't ... have to," he murmured. "You're ... stuck with me now."

Rin let out a yawn and sighed softly, wrapping an arm around Haru's shoulders. It was all so familiar and yet he couldn't wrap his head around any of it. It was all too surreal. "We should probably be getting back," he said after a while of feeling Haru's drying hair tickle his chin. Oh God, to wake up to that feeling every morning? That would be nothing but bliss.

"Is your ... family back?" Haru asked anxiously, his hands fisting around the hem of the hoodie.

"Yes," Rin said. He stood up and offered his hands to Haru. He grabbed on and was helped to his feet before dusting any splinters off his butt. "Why?" he asked at Haru's shift in expression. "Does that bother you?"

Haru shrugged stiffly, his head bowed to his chest. "I ... What if ... they don't like me?"

Rin stared at him for a moment before laughing out loud. It felt good to laugh again. He laughed until his sides hurt before he scooped Haru up in his arms and pressed a firm kiss to his frowning lips. "You're such an idiot!" he grinned between kisses. "A wonderful ... silly ... supernatural ... idiot." He planted one final kiss to Haru's forehead, "And dear God do I love you."

Haru peaked up at him from under the shade of the hood and smiled -an actual, full mouthed smile. His eyes lit up like two dark blue stones and Rin felt his heart skip. "Love you too ... My Rin ..."

Rin set Haru down again and laced their fingers together. "Come on, I can't wait to introduce you. I've told my family about you."

Haru hung back a little, the weight of his insecurity tugging Rin back. "Are you ... sure they'll like me?"

Rin stopped at the base of the staircase that led up to the main road. Looking down at Haru he squeezed his hand. "Do you trust me?"

" ... Yes."

"Then it'll be all right," he assured.

Haru pulled a face, not entirely convinced. Regardless of the doubts in his mind, he squeezed Rin's hand back and let the redhead lead him up the concrete steps towards an entirely new way of life. It would be absolutely terrifying, and now that it was to be permanent, he had a lot to figure out. With Rin there to help him, however, he was sure he'd be alright.

Now there was just one thing left: meeting Rin's family.

 _Shit_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the second to last chapter. One more to go!


	16. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

_One Year Later_

September was still suffocating in the way it heated everything from the air breathed to the bleached planks that made up the decking of the pier. The sea was warm enough to paddle in but Rin was more interested in sprawling out on the deck with his towel as a buffer between his back and the splinters and soaking up some rays. It had been a tiring last few months due to all the studying he had to do and he was glad that he had the summer to do absolutely nothing but worry about not getting burned whilst sleeping out in the sun.

It happened far too often for his liking.

The one thing Rin could definitely say about the last year was that no one ever truly warned you about just how exhausting university life was. He was just thankful he hadn't opted to go out of town like Makoto had. He preferred staying as local as possible to help his mum out and make sure his sister was doing okay.

Then there was Haru.

Despite the way time had lapsed since then, Rin could still remember that day so clearly; he had taken Haru home, pinching himself the entire time, and had to surrender his socks to the smaller man as he had no shoes and the hot pavements weren't going to be kind to his fresh little feet. They'd walked along mostly in silence just soaking up the weight of the matter at hand. Rin had been a mixture of emotions; he was elated that Haru was back, anxious about what his mum would really think when face-to-face with his love-interest, bracing himself for Gou's gushing and most of all, how Haru would handle it all.

He had been practically humming as he led a stiff-legged Haru to his front door, slipped his key in the lock and nudged him inside. They'd been at the beach far longer than expected, so everyone was up and organising lunch when they had entered the house. Gou's face and exploded into a smile but Rin gave her a warning look to calm down before she gave Haru a heart attack. His mum was more understanding; she shook Haru's hand, smiled in that knowing way and then went about setting another place at the kitchen table.

That evening she had come back from the shops with a small bathroom caddie and had taken Haru to one side and explained what it was. It had a toothbrush in it, a flannel, a small bottle of mouthwash and a new hairbrush. Rin had been shocked when Haru had come into his room later that evening carrying the caddie. His face had been a mixture of emotions as he fiddled with the drawstrings. He'd ended up breaking down against Rin's chest and sobbing for a few minutes at having been so readily welcomed into the family. Rin had looked down at him, cupping his smooth face in his hands and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "I told you she'd love you," he'd said before wiping the spot of toothpaste from the corner of Haru's mouth.

It had been strange, after that day, to essentially 'move' Haru into his house considering that Haru didn't actually have any stuff to bring in with him. Surprisingly enough, his mum didn't seem to mind the idea. As long as Haru was 'cleaner than you' she was completely on board. The next day Gou had woken them up and tugged the covers off their heads -thankfully they had been wearing clothes for a change -and demanded that they got dressed. They needed to go on a shopping trip and she wanted to help.

There had been no argument -mainly because Haru couldn't wear Rin's clothes forever.

Haru had his own style, Rin noticed; it was plain, clean cut yet at the same time had a bit of an edge. It was alternative enough to not be 'hipster' or 'punk' but not bargain basement dregs either. As long as he was comfortable, Rin didn't mind. The hard part had been convincing Haru that, yes, he did in fact need to learn to buy and wear shoes.

Flippers _didn't_ count.

As the sun baked Rin's skin, he absently thought that he needed another douse of sun-cream to keep from burning brighter than his hair. A light breeze cooled the sweat bubbling on his chest. The coolness from the sea was almost too enticing; maybe going for a swim wouldn't be so bad. Readjusting the earbuds in his ear, he scrolled through his iPod before selecting a song and letting it drown out the rest of the world for a moment.

Something clacked on the planks beside him.

Frowning he turned to the sound of the noise; a wet pebble rested further up from his head, glossy in the sunlight. Turning his gaze back to the sea he sat up and stretched his arms. He was over-come by a dizziness that only sleeping in the sun could bring on. He groaned and rubbed his temples, forcing his sunglasses up in his hair.

"Rin!" Haru's voice called out from the waves. "Throw it back!"

Shaking his head, Rin scooted back and picked the pebble up. This was a silly game they had; Haru would dive into the sea and feel 'at home' again for hours on end. He'd pester Rin to skip pebbles out so he could catch them. It had to be said, he was a good catch. He was even getting better at skimming them back so that Rin could catch them. It was like the strangest game of catch ever.

Smoothing his thumb over the pebble Rin lifted his arm back and called, "Here it comes!" before flicking his wrist and watching the stone skip out across the green and gold waves.

To no surprise, Haru caught it in his palm having lifted himself out of the water and snatched it from the air.

Rin grinned as he watched from the pier. Getting Haru a job had been difficult but, luckily, Makoto had been there to help save the day. On weekends he had been helping teach young children to swim to earn some extra money. However, now that he was away at University most of the year it made the job impossible for him. They needed someone more full time anyway. That's when Haru had come to mind; he practically lived and breathed water, was one of the strongest swimmers out there now that his health had improved, and he had nothing else to do all day.

"Besides," Makoto had reasoned when Rin had initially been unsure on the idea. "He won't have anything to do all day when your mum is at work and you and Gou are off studying all day."

Rin had still been unsure on the whole idea. Their way of life was still new to Haru. What if he wasn't able to cope with it all?

Makoto, as ever, had been the voice of reason. "Rin, relax! This is the perfect first timer job for him. We can help him train and study. He'll get a certificate once he does a few courses and then boom! Job guaranteed. I'll even put a good word in for him. The coach respects my opinion."

It had been decided.

Haru had been a little tougher to convince, though.

"Why do I need a job?" he'd asked when they'd talked to him about it later that night. They'd been sitting out on the porch and chatting before finally broaching the subject. Rin could remember how a little stray cat had come up and sniffed at Haru before curling around his ankles. Maybe, on a feline level, he still smelled of fish.

"So you can help pay for food and afford to go out places," Makoto had said, trying to explain to Haru just how much money was a 'must have' on land.

"I don't eat that much," he'd argued. He had twisted his mouth into a frown. "Rin?" he'd finally said, asking for confirmation.

"Well wouldn't you like to maybe go on holidays? Travel more? Go out in the evenings."

"... Yes."

"Then you'll need money. I can't afford everything now that I'll be going to Uni."

After that, it had taken about a week and half by the time Haru was completely convinced to give the idea a go. At least he would study and take the courses given to him. He didn't think that he would pass, but Rin and Makoto were determined to make him succeed. It was literally the perfect job for him and opportunities like that were hard to come by so late in the year.

Studying with Haru was literally just a number of naming exercises. He knew a lot of what to do, he just needed to associate the correct terminology to the tasks at hand as well as the moves and positions he was supposed to take whilst rescuing someone. The CPR experience was enough to make both men and Gou blush so hard when Haru still got confused about why he needed to kiss so many people.

The memories of those sometimes long nights never failed to make Rin grin like an idiot.

Holding his hand up to shield his face from the sun he caught sight of Haru's stark white face bobbing about the waves and called out for him to come back. "COME ON!" he yelled out, "WE NEED TO GET GOING! MAKOTO AND SOUSUKE WILL BE WAITING FOR US!"

"FIVE MORE MINUTES!" Haru called back.

Rin rolled his eyes and leaned back on his hands. It was always 'five more minutes' with this man. He could never get enough of the sea, which Rin wouldn't usually begrudge if Haru hadn't insisted they do the night-time New Year dip the previous winter. He had been so cold he was sure his genitals had crawled back up inside his body just to get some idea of warmth. Glancing down at his watch he bit down on his lip. They would be cutting it close -again. He was sure that the two of them now had a reputation for being ten minutes late.

As he watched Haru glide and dive about the waves he did feel a bead of guilt niggling at the back of his mind. Haru deserved to come to the beach as much as he liked. He had, after all, been banished. Rin found himself stroking the scars in the dead of night as Haru slept on peacefully. A part of him wanted to know exactly what Haru had experienced and another part of him didn't want the image burned into his brain forever. Haru was safe now and that was all that mattered.

His watch bleeped for 1PM.

Grabbing his towel from under him, Rin got to his feet and rubbed his legs dry. Turning to look out across the waves he yelled, "COME ON OUT, FISH BOY, OR NO MACKEREL FOR YOU!"

The deadpan look he got made him snort. If there was one sure way to get Haru to do something, you just needed to threaten his love of that damned fish and he was faster than the Road-Runner with a rocket up its backside. Rin was just tugging on a green t-shirt when two pale hands, shiny with sea water, curled around the edge of the pier. Haru glared up at him petulantly, before hauling himself up onto his own towel. He sat there, cross-legged, and dried himself off. Rin used his own towel to ruffle the dark blue hair, laughing when Haru made a noise of protest.

"There all clean and dry," Rin smirked as he packed their things into his rucksack and hauled it over his shoulder.

Haru stuck his tongue out before pulling on a plain t-shirt and hurrying to catch up, his feet clapping noisily in his newest pair of vans. He still wasn't entirely used to them but vans being what they were, they were the easiest type of shoe that he could manage.

Once they'd mounted the concrete steps they walked about half a mile before reaching the car park, which was nothing more than a fenced off area over-looking the bay of moored boats and the pier. The floor was covered in white, chalky gravel that stained Rin's tyres with white dust. It meant he had to get his truck washed more regularly than just once a month otherwise all the chalk chips would wedge inside the wheels. Haru put their towels and Rin's rucksack into the backseat before climbing into the passenger side. They buckled up and were on the road in seconds flat.

Winding down the windows, Rin handed a spare pair of sunglasses over to Haru, pulled the sunshades down and steered into town where they were meeting Sousuke and Makoto for an early dinner and then a movie. It was weird, this whole double-dating thing, but Rin had to admit the gooey, romantic side of him was in Heaven. He had never pegged Sousuke to be one for so many dates, but the older man had explained to him, one evening, how Makoto had a lot to cope with, helping to take care of his younger siblings, helping his family where he could as well as working and studying. Besides, on top of all that, he also went to Sousuke's therapy sessions with him. The dark-haired man figured it was the least he could do, treating Makoto to some intimate one-on-one time away from all the havoc of his daily life.

Now the dating was a regular thing and Rin had to admit, when he and Haru tagged along, it was lovely and calming. The better evenings, however, were when he took Haru out on a date on their own, especially to the new fish restaurant that opened up on the North side of town. They'd gotten all dressed up and Rin had made a reservation. It was all very high-class.

It had been the anniversary of the day they'd met.

When they stopped at a traffic light, Rin glanced over at Haru just in time to see him fiddle with a black chord tied around his neck. It was a small token that Rin had bought him the first week he'd been back.

It was a slender Hei Matau more commonly known as a Jade hook.

He hadn't had to explain to Haru the important of the stone. As soon as those dark blue orbs had stared up at him, he knew that Haru knew.

In one simply token Rin had expression everything he could about the two of them; love, the capturing of his heart, continued wishing for good health and, if this was a dream and Haru turned into a merman at a drop of salt water, he would forever have safe passage across the sea and find his way home to Rin.

Since that day he'd never taken it off.

The lights turned green and Rin drove the car forward, being careful not to get too excited and just flooring it through the endless granny drivers that came out in daylight hours. Haru fiddled with the radio until a soft song came on and filled the car. Rin let him do it, he was more content to glance sideways and watch Haru cock his arm on the windowsill of the car, fingers pressed to his lips and turning ever so slightly to watch the sea front melt away from behind his amber sunglasses as the sun caught on his skin.

Rin smiled to himself and refocused his attention on driving. Life was scary and you didn't exactly know what it was going to churn up and drop into your lap. It was a roller coaster ride and sure, even now that Haru was human, it wasn't perfect. Rin had his tantrums over silly little things, especially with no sleep, and Haru got offended sometimes and would silent treatment the redhead into the ground for days on end.

However, the happy days outweighed the bad by miles, and that was all that mattered to him. Besides, Haru was human now, what more did he really need when he had the love of his life to wake up to every morning?

God, he really was an idiot in love. He had fallen for Haru hook, line and sinker. And he'd never been happier.

**~ Fin~**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you like how I ended it? T'was Punny, no? :P I hope you guys have loved this story as well as the ending. I love all of you reviewers whether you be the gushiest of gushers, or the classic "UPDATE MORE"'s I have loved all the support to spur me to finish this. Please R&R, let me know what you think, and please, have a wonderful rest-of-summer!
> 
> All my love,
> 
> Belle xox

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Free! story. I've had this AU in my mind for a while and couldn't resist trying it out. Let me know what you all think x


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